UC-NRLF 


3M 


P.  A.  B.  WIDENER 

Dean   of   Philadelphia's   Rapid  Transit 
Director  Philadelphia  Rapid  Transit  Company 


Philadelphia's  Rapid  Transit 

BEING    AN     ACCOUNT 

of  the    Construction  and    Equipment  of  the 

MARKET  STREET  SUBWAY-ELEVATED 

and  its   place  in   the  great  system   and 

service   of  the   Philadelphia  Rapid       "^fJ^s/ry 

°e'VA'ro^  Off  c 
Transit    Company  '^c 

Together    with 

A   review   of  the  work   of  the 
Millard  Construction  Co. 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA. 

DEPARTMENT  OF  CIVIL  ENGINEERING 

UERKE'.EY,  CALIFORNIA 


PHILADELPHIA,   PA.,   U.S.A. 
MCMVIII 


f  TF72. 


Entered  with  the  Librarian  of  Congres* 

at  Washington,  September,  1908,  by 

Arnold  &  Dyer,  Philadelphia 


ARNOLD  &  DYER 

PHILADELPHIA 


INTRODUCTION 


HE  City  of  Philadelphia  is  proud  of  her  sub-  title  the  "City 
of  Homes;"  but  the  very  fact  that  every  workingman  has  his 
separate  home  in  this  city  resulted  in  such  a  scattering  of  the 
population  as  made  the  expenditure  necessary  for  an  elevated 
or  subway  road  a  very  doubtful  enterprise  from  the  investors' 
point  of  view.  New  York,  Boston  and  Chicago,  with  their 
apartment  houses  for  the  rich  and  tenement  houses  for  the 
poor,  gave  a  tributary  population  along  the  main  arteries  of 
travel  which  would  easily  support  such  lines,  and  Philadelphia 
was  therefore  the  last  of  the  great  cities  to  attain  elevated  and  subway  transportation.  But 
while  she  was  the  last  to  get  it,  she  was  the  first  in  which  the  subways  were  built  by  private 
capital,  and  she  has  profited  by  the  experience  and  mistakes  of  other  cities,  and  to-day 
presents  the  finest  specimen  of  elevated  and  subway  construction  in  the  world. 

The  topography  of  Philadelphia  was  such  that  its  surface  travel  has  been  taken  care 
of  by  a  perfect  network  of  tracks,  aggregating  over  600  miles  in  length,  so  that  throughout 
the  central  part  of  the  city  every  400  feet  finds  a  street  occupied  by  a  street  railway  track. 
The  streets  are  narrow,  and  with  a  grade  crossing  every  400  feet,  the  rate  at  which  cars 
could  be  safely  moved  was  necessarily  slower  than  prevailed  in  other  cities.  Many  "L" 
lines  had  been  established  in  order  to  take  the  public  directly  from  their  homes  to  their 
places  of  business  without  change  of  cars,  and  the  result  was  a  congestion  of  travel  in  the 
central  portion  of  the  city,  which  cried  for  remedy. 

The  controlling  interests  of  the  Union  Traction  Company  which,  by  a  series  of  com- 
binations extending  over  a  period  of  20  years,  had  come  into  control  of  all  the  surface  lines, 
recognized  that  something  had  to  be  done,  even  though  the  expenditure  required  would  not 
be  at  once  productive  of  an  attractive  revenue.  And  accordingly  in  1902  they  acquired 
the  franchise  previously  granted  for  an  elevated  road  the  length  of  Market  Street. 

It  will  be  recalled  that  this  franchise  was  for  an  elevated  road  and  not  a  subway.   With 


the  interests  of  the  city  placed  ahead  of  their  own  financial  interests,  the  Union:  Twtipn 
Company  management  first  secured  an  amendment  of  this  franchise  so  as  tp,  permit  -'the 


building  of  the  subway  between  the  two  rivers,  and,  secondly,  secured  a  further- 
under  which  they  were  allowed  to  construct  their  portals  upon  private  property,  that  at 
the  east  end  being  acquired  by  the  new  Company  at  a  cost  of  upwards  of  half  a  million 
dollars,  and  that  at  the  west  end  requiring  the  construction  of  a  separate  bridge  over  the 
Schuylkill  River.  While,  therefore,  the  enterprise,  as  originally  conceived,  was  of  doubtful 
success  from  a  financial  standpoint,  these  people,  whom  it  is  popular  to  think  of  only  as 


looking  after  their  own  interests,  took  upon  themselves  an  additional  expenditure  of  several 
million  dollars  solely  for  the  best  interests  of  the  City  of  Philadelphia.  The  work  is  now 
completed ;  it  is  a  monument  to  the  unselfish  public  spirit  of  the  financial  interests  which 
attempted  it,  to  the  skill  of  the  engineers  who  designed  it  and  the  contractors  who  built  it, 
under  difficulties  never  before  encountered  in  similar  work.  Whether  it  will  pay  directly 
is  a  question  yet  to  be  determined.  If,  however,  it  should  bring  to  the  management  of  the 
present  operating  Company,  the  Philadelphia  Rapid  Transit  Company,  some  recognition 
from  the  public  that  their  interests  are  first  considered,  it  will  at  once  prove  a  profitable 
investment. 


OUTLINE    OF    THE    MARKET    STREET    SUBWAY-ELEVATED 

1  HE  Market  Street  Elevated  Passenger  Railway  extends  from 
a  terminal  at  Sixty-ninth  Street,  west  of  the  city  boundary 
in  Delaware  County,  on  an  east  and  west  line  to  the  ferries 
on  the  Delaware  River.  It  comprises  one  of  several  routes 
of  rapid  transit  railways  for  which  franchises  were  granted 
by  Councils  of  the  City  of  Philadelphia  in  1901.  The 
Market  Street  line,  and  a  short  section  of  the  Frankford 
Elevated  Railway,  which  is  used  as  the  eastern  terminal  of 
the  Market  Street  line,  are  the  only  routes  utilized  up  to 
this  time.  By  ordinance  of  Councils  in  1902  a  subway  was  authorized  between  the  Schuyl- 
kill  and  Delaware  Rivers. 

At  the  Sixty-ninth  Street  terminal  is  located  a  passenger  station  connecting  the 
Market  Street  line  with  electric  lines  that  tap  portions  of  Delaware,  Montgomery,  and 
Chester  Counties,  also  the  repair  shops,  a  power  house,  sidings,  storage  yards,  and  other 
appurtenances  for  the  maintenance  of  the  line. 

The  first  section  of  the  railway  runs  on  private  property  in  cut  and  fill,  with  retaining 
walls,  to  the  Millbourne  Mills,  near  Cobb's  Creek,  immediately  west  of  the  city  line. 
Thence  the  route  is  by  two-track  elevated  structure  in  the  centre  of  Market  Street  to  the 
new  bridge  built  by  the  Company  over  the  Schuylkill  River. 

The  Schuylkill  River  Bridge  is  located  100  feet  north  of  the  centre  line  of  Market 
Street.  It  is  reached  by  reverse  curves  on  the  Elevated  Railway  from  the  west,  and  con- 
nects by  reverse  curves  and  an  incline  with  the  Subway  running  east  under  the  bed  of  Mar- 
ket Street  to  the  City  Hall  and  the  Delaware  River. 

The  Bridge  and  the  Subway  as  far  as  the  City  Hall  have  four  tracks,  the  two  inner 
tracks  for  trains  operating  on  the  Elevated  Railway,  and  the  two  outer  tracks  for  the  sur- 
face cars  from  West  Philadelphia.  At  the  City  Hall  the  tracks  diverge,  the  two  eastbound 
and  the  two  westbound  passing  to  the  south  and  north  of  the  City  Hall  respectively.  The 
tracks  for  the  surface  cars  terminate  in  a  loop  on  the  east  side  of  the  City  HaU,:  passing 
under  the  through  tracks,  so  that  all  street  cars  from  West  Philadelphia  return' westWaixL 
after  passing  around  the  City  Hall. 

The  two  tracks  for  trains  continue  on  the  East  Market  Street  Subway  to  Front  Street ; 
thence  north  by  curve  and  an  incline  on  private  property  between  Front  and  Water  Streets, 
and  then  by  Elevated  Railway  on  Arch  Street  to  Delaware  Avenue,  proceeding  south  on 
Delaware  Avenue  to  the  eastern  terminus  at  South  Street.  The  Delaware  River  ferries 
at  Market,  Chestnut,  and  South  Streets  have  stations  on  the  Delaware  Avenue  Elevated. 


A  third  rail  supplies  power  for  the  Elevated  and  Subway  trains;  the  cars  that  enter 
the  Subway  from  the  surface  lines  are  operated  by  overhead  trolley. 

With  the  completion  of  the  east  section  of  the  Subway  by  the  Millard  Construction 
Company,  the  line  was  practically  finished.  It  was  thrown  open  to  public  travel  from 
Sixty-ninth  Street  to  the  Second  Street  station  on  August  3,  1908,  having  been  open  as  far 
as  Fifteenth  Street  for  some  months.  The  Delaware  Avenue  section  was  then  rapidly 
nearing  completion. 


LOCATION 

No.  OF  TRACKS 

LINEAL  FEET  OP 
STRUCTURE 

LINEAL  FEET  OF 
SINGLE  TRACK 

SECTION  No.  12 

Cut,  fill  and  retaining  walls 

West    terminal    to    Mill- 

2 

2,292 

4,584 

bourne  Mills 

SECTION  No.  z-A 

Steel  elevated  structure  with 

Millbourne  Mills  to  Sixty- 

2 

680 

1,360 

open  floor 

third  Street 

SECTION  No.  2 

Steel  elevated  structure  with 

Sixty-third       Street       to 

2 

18,697 

37,394 

solid  floor 

Schuylkill  River  Bridge 

SECTION  No.  i 

Riveted  lattice  bridge 

Schuylkill  River  Bridge 

4 

576 

2,304 

SECTION  No.  4 

Open  incline  and  subway 

West  house  line  Twenty- 

4  (Sub.) 

452 

2,876 

second  Street  to  Schuyl- 

4 (Inc.) 

267 

ff 

kill  River  Bridge 

SECTION  No.  3 

Subway 

Fifteenth  Street  to  Twenty- 

4 

3,243 

12,972 

second  Street 

SECTION  No.  3-A 

Subway 

Fifteenth    Street    to    W. 

4 

173 

692 

Broad  Street 

SECTION  No.  5 

Subway 

About  City  Hall 

2  (each  side) 

2,139 

4,769 

SECTION  No.  s-A 

Subway 

40  lineal  feet  east  of  Juni- 

2 

40 

80 

per  Street 

SECTION  No.  6 

Subway 

From  40  feet  east  of  Juni- 

2 

5,889 

11,778 

per   Street   to  the   east 

,  . 

portal 

'./;'  SECTION  No.  7 

Open  incline  with  concrete 

East  portal  to  Arch  and 

2 

498 

996 

.  'Viaduct  :  and  -  retaining 

Water  Streets 

'-•wafer 

SECTION  No.  n 

Steel  elevated  structure 

Arch  and  Water  Streets  by 

2 

403  open  floor 

806 

Delaware     Avenue     to 

South  Street 

3,758  solid  floor 

10,167 

39,I°7 

90,778 

7.41  miles 

17.20  miles. 

The  preceding  tabulated  statement,  giving  the  kind  and  number  of  lineal  feet  of  struc- 
ture, number  of  tracks,  and  lineal  feet  of  single  track,  is  of  interest  as  summarizing  the  whole 
line.  The  section  numbers  show  how  the  construction  work  was  divided  up  for  ease  of 
working. 

The  railway  is  located  on  right  of  way  purchased  by  the  Company  from  the  eastern 
boundary  of  the  Sixty-ninth  Street  Terminal  to  the  abutment  near  the  Millbourne  Mills. 
This  part  of  the  line  comprises  about  720  lineal  feet  of  fill  between  retaining  walls.  It 
includes  a  reinforced  concrete  bridge  which  forms  the  outlet  for  a  lane.  The  remainder 
consists  of  grading  on  a  side  hill  sloping  downward  to  the  north  toward  Cobb's  Creek, 
and  to  the  dam  furnishing  water-power  to  the  Millbourne  Mills.  The  southerly  side  of 
the  roadbed  for  considerable  distance  is  flanked  by  a  retaining  wall.  The  total  length  of 
this  section  is  2,292  feet. 

A  passenger  station  has  be.en  built  near  the  line  of  Sixty-sixth  Street,  to  serve  a  new 
settlement  known  as  Millbourne,  between  the  railway  and  the  West  Chester  Pike.  A 
frame  station  has  been  erected  with  stairways  and  bridging  for  access  to  the  east  and  west 
bound  platforms  over  the  tracks. 

Considerable  work  was  required  for  the  drainage  of  the  sloping  territory  on  the  south 
of  the  line.  Paved  gutters  were  made  at  the  base  of  the  slope,  discharging  into  iron  pipes 
that  cross  under  the  tracks  to  the  waterway  on  the  north. 

This  section  of  the  work  was  built  between  May  25,  1905,  and  December  3,  1906, 
including  some  additional  walls  about  the  Sixty-sixth  Street  station,  not  contemplated  at 
the  time  the  work  was  started. 

The  alignment  is  half  on  curve  and  half  on  tangent.  One  tangent  extends  past  the 
Sixty-sixth  Street  station,  the  sharpest  curve  having  a  radius  of  500  feet  on  the  centre  line 
of  the  roadbed.  The  line  ascends  from  the  western  end  of  the  section  to  the  east  23  feet 
in  the  entire  length,  the  maximum  grade  being  2.84  per  cent. 

The  principal  items  of  construction  on  the  section  total  as  follows : 

Excavation 12,048  cubic  yards 

Stone  masonry 7,759  cubic  yards 

Concrete 355  cubic  yards 

Reinforcing  rods  for  concrete 9  tons 

Iron  fence 3,594  lineal  feet 

Earth  fill 5,098  cubic  yards 

In  the  East  Market  Street  Subway  the  passenger  platforms  at  the  stations  are  all  on 
tangent.  They  are  350  feet  long — except  at  the  Thirteenth  Street  station,  where  they  are 
364  feet  long — and  provide  for  eight-car  trains.  The  clear  space  between  the  edges  of  the 
platforms  and  the  sides  of  the  cars  is  3  inches,  and  the  platforms  are  3  feet  6  inches  above 


the  tops  of  the  rails.  The  edges  of  the  platforms  and  the  steps  on  all  stairways  are  pro- 
vided with  carborundum  safety  treads  to  prevent  slipping. 

All  stairways  leading  to  the  street  are  5  feet  8  inches  wide  between  side  walls,  and  are 
surmounted  by  iron  hoods  of  ornamental  design. 

Each  of  the  stations  has  ample  exits  and  entrances.  At  Second  Street  there  are  eight 
openings  to  the  sidewalks.  Four  are  used  as  entrances  and  four  as  exits.  At  Fifth  Street 
there  are  two  openings  on  Fifth  Street  just  south  of  Market  Street,  and  four  openings  on 
Market  Street  just  west  of  Fifth  Street,  with  one  opening  through  the  property  433  Market 
Street.  At  Eighth  Street  there  is  an  opening  on  the  street  in  front  of  the  property  730  Market 
Street.  The  other  entrances  and  exits  are  through  the  various  department  stores  at  the 
corner  of  Eighth  and  Market  Streets.  Eleventh  Street  has  seven  openings  on  the  street, 
with  entrances  and  exits  through  the  buildings  at  the  corners.  Thirteenth  Street  has  six 
entrances  and  exits  to  the  street,  and  two  through  a  department  store.  All  the  entrances 
and  exits  through  department  stores  and  other  buildings  are  open  day  and  night. 

West  of  the  City  Hall  there  are  only  two  stations  in  the  Subway — Fifteenth  Street  and 
Nineteenth  Street.  The  latter  is  served  by  the  Subway-Surface  line  cars  only,  the  Subway- 
Elevated  cars  not  stopping  until  the  Schuylkill  is  crossed  and  the  Elevated  station  at  Thirty- 
second  Street  is  reached. 

The  keynote  of  the  Subway  station  design  is  a  massive  simplicity,  in  harmony  with 
the  dignity  peculiar  to  the  concrete  of  which  they  are  built. 

But  at  Eighth,  Eleventh,  and  Thirteenth  Streets  the  department  stores  and  other 
buildings  have  introduced  a  brilliant  note  by  providing  handsome  entrances  to  their  respec- 
tive establishments  and  long  series  of  show  windows,  as  attractively  dressed  and  brightly 
lighted  as  those  on  the  main  street  level.  The  windows  are  on  the  main  platform  level 
at  Thirteenth  Street,  while  at  Eleventh  Street  they  stretch  along  the  300  foot  concrete  bal- 
conies above  the  main  platform. 

Eighth  Street  is  the  show  point,  with  its  numerous  department  stores,  aggregating 
several  hundred  feet  of  brilliantly  lighted  show  windows,  and  its  store  entrances,  rich  in 
marble  and  tiling  and  polished  wood  and  artistic  metal  work.  By  the  cross-over  from 
balcony  to  balcony  above  the  roofs  of  the  trains,  the  shopper  can  go  from  building  to  build- 
ing without  stepping  on  to  the  street.  Each  of  the  store  entrances  has  one  or  more  ticket 
offices,  designed  in  harmony  with  its  immediate  surroundings. 

Each  station  is  provided  with  four  toilet  rooms,  two  on  each  platform.  The  toilet 
rooms  are  furnished  with  modern  sanitary  fixtures,  the  floors  and  wainscoting  lined 
with  mosaic  ceramic  tiles.  To  provide  for  ventilating  the  toilets,  General  Electric 
550  volt  electric  fans  have  been  installed,  each  expelling  460  cubic  feet  of  air  per 
minute  through  special  ventilating  ducts.  All  of  the  fixtures  in  the  toilet  rooms  are 


f  £J 


JOHN  B.  PARSONS 

President  Philadelphia  Rapid  Transit  Company 


vented  in  accordance  with  the  best  practice,  the  vents  leading  to  the  sidewalk,  into  which 
gratings  are  placed. 

The  ticket  booths  in  the  stations  on  East  Market  Street  are  built  of  brick  to  the 
level  of  the  counters,  the  brick  being  faced  with  mosaic  ceramic  tiles.  The  counters,  the 
facing  and  the  cornice  are  of  Italian  marble.  The  ticket  booths  at  the  Second,  Fifth,  and 
Eighth  Streets  stations  are  placed  in  the  middle  of  the  stations  under  the  cross  streets,  in 
bays  or  extensions  designed  in  the  Subway  structure.  The  booths  on  the  north  side  of  the 
Eleventh  and  Thirteenth  Streets  stations  are  also  placed  in  the  middle  of  the  stations, 
while  those  on  the  south  side  of  these  stations  are  located  in  the  southeast  corners  of  the 
lobbies  in  bays  or  extensions  of  the  Subway  proper. 

The  running  time  from  Sixty-ninth  Street  to  Second  Street  is  twenty-seven  minutes 
eastward ;  westward  the  heavy  grades  add  one  minute  to  the  time.  Between  the  City  Hall 
and  Second  Street  the  running  time  is  seven  minutes,  or  less  than  half  the  best  time  possible 
on  the  surface  lines. 

Surface-Subway  cars,  coming  on  to  the  Market  Street  surface  tracks  from  the  Wood- 
land Avenue,  Lancaster  Avenue,  Baring  Street,  and  Angora  lines  at  Thirty-second  Street, 
cross  the  Schuylkill  River  and  run  through  the  western  section  of  the  Subway.  They 
occupy  the  extreme  north  and  south  tracks  of  the  four  in  this  section,  stopping  at 
Nineteenth  Street  and  Fifteenth  Street.  They  then  loop  around  the  City  Hall  on  tracks 
below  the  main  Subway  tracks,  stopping  at  a  lower  level  platform  at  Thirteenth  Street 
station  to  take  on  westbound  passengers.  Passengers  from  this  line  desiring  to  go  east  are 
transferred  to  the  Subway  trains  at  Fifteenth  Street  station. 

Owing  to  the  fact  that  the  different  rapid  transit  lines  as  contemplated  radiated 
like  the  ribs  of  a  fan  from  the  eastern  portion  of  Market  Street,  it  was  impossible  to  ar- 
range for  suitable  common  shops  or  terminals  on  the  eastern  end.  The  Philadelphia 
Rapid  Transit  Company,  therefore,  purchased  a  tract  of  about  thirty  acres  lying  just  west 
of  the  city  line,  near  Sixty-ninth  Street,  and  has  built  on  this  property  an  Inspection 
Barn,  Storage  Yards,  Repair  Shops,  also  a  large  Terminal  Building,  which  serves  to  make 
easy  the  transfer  of  passengers  from  the  trains  of  the  Philadelphia  Rapid  Transit  Com- 
pany to  the  cars  of  the  Philadelphia  &  West  Chester  Traction  Company,  Philadelphia 
&  Western  Railroad  Company,  or  any  other  lines  which  might  radiate  from  that  point. 
The  storage  yard  will  have  an  ultimate  capacity  of  two  hundred  cars.  The  inspection 
barn  will  hold  four  trains  of  cars  at  one  tune,  and  this,  as  well  as  the  shops  themselves, 
has  been  designed  with  the  idea  of  future  extension  whenever  required. 

Both  shops  and  inspection  barn  are  built  with  brick  walls,  concrete  roof  resting  on 
iron  trusses,  concrete  floors,  and  with  pits  under  all  tracks.  The  floor  in  the  inspection 
barn  is  dropped  twelve  inches  below  the  head  of  the  rail.  The  shops  are  built  along  both 


sides  of  a  transfer  table  running  approximately  north  and  south.  The  shop  on  the  west 
of  the  table  is  used  for  car  washing,  jacking-up  the  bodies,  overhauling  the  trucks,  ma- 
chine shop  and  blacksmith  shop;  the  shops  on  the  east  side  of  the  transfer  table  contain 
the  paint  shops,  storage  facilities,  etc.  The  transfer  table,  instead  of  running  on  four 
to  six  tracks,  has  only  two,  the  table  consisting  of  two  plate  girders  of  45  foot  span,  carry- 
ing the  tracks  and  platform  for  the  motor  and  controller.  The  table  operates  in  a  pit 
5  feet  deep,  at  one  side  of  which  is  a  tunnel  through  which  wires,  heating  pipes,  etc.,  are 
laid.  The  shops  and  inspection  barn  are  all  heated  and  lighted  from  a  small  power 
plant  containing  two  250  horse-power  B.  &  W.  boilers,  two  Fitchburg  compound  con- 
derising  engines,  and  Westinghouse  3  wire  220  volt  generators.  The  power  plant  also 
contains  a  75  kilowatt  DeLaval  turbo-generator  set  for  day  use,  and  the  duplex  air  com- 
pressor used  to  supply  the  signal  system  and  air  tools  in  the  shops. 

Passenger  accommodations  of  the  Terminal  are  very  complete  and  efficient.  The 
trains  of  the  Philadelphia  Rapid  Transit  Company  run  through  on  depressed  tracks, 
separate  platforms  being  used  for  incoming  and  outgoing  passengers.  The  main  floor 
of  the  Terminal,  on  which  are  located  the  general  waiting  room  and  lobby,  is  somewhat 
above  the  street  level  and  connects  with  the  depressed  tracks  by  easy  stairways.  Adjoin- 
ing this  room  on  the  west,  and  on  the  same  level,  is  the  terminal  of  the  Delaware  County 
trolley  lines  to  West  Chester,  Ardmore,  and  Collingdale;  and  wide  corridors  running  north 
give  access  to  the  cars  of  the  Philadelphia  &  Western  Railroad.  Toilets  and  other 
accommodations  for  travellers  are  of  the  latest  approved  style.  On  the  upper  floors  of 
the  building  are  the  rooms  for  trainmen  and  motormen,  and  for  the  operating  officials 
of  the  division. 

The  building  is  of  brick  and  reinforced  concrete,  of  dignified  and  substantial  design, 
well  suited  to  express  the  purpose  for  which  it  was  built. 


e«i 


GEORGE  D.  WIDENER 

First  Vice-President  Philadelphia  Rapid  Transit  Company 


GENERATION    AND    DISTRIBUTION    OF    POWER 


N  the  year  1902,  when  the  Philadelphia  Rapid  Transit 
Company  leased  the  Union  Traction  Company,  it  found 
that  Company  operating  several  power  generating  plants, 
most  of  which  had  been  built  by  the  underlying  com- 
panies. 

Direct  current  only  was  generated  in  all  these  plants,  at 
a  potential  of  525  to  575  volts.     To  supply  some  of    the 
feeders  to  outlying  districts  "boosters"  were  in  use. 
The  plants  were  located  as  follows : 


No.  i.  7500  kilowatts Thirteenth  and  Mt.  Vernon  Streets 

No.  4.  6000  kilowatts Thirty- third  and  Market  Streets 

No.  5.  2100  kilowatts Thirty-second  and  Dauphin  Streets 

No.  2.  3700  kilowatts 920  North  Delaware  Avenue 

No.  6.1 700  kilowatts Twenty-seventh  and  South  Streets 

No.  3 .  5000  kilowatts Beach  and  Green  Streets 

No.  7.  2900  kilowatts Ogontz 

No.  8.     500  kilowatts Chestnut  Hill 

No.  9.  1500  kilowatts Willow  Grove 

No.  10.    400  kilowatts Second  and  Wyoming  Avenue 


Philadelphia  Traction  Company. 

Electric  Traction  Company, 
r  Peoples  Traction  Company. 

1 


i 


Union  Traction  Company. 


Total,  31,300  kilowatts. 

It  was  evident  that  all  the  future  development  of  the  city  must  be  in  the  suburban 
or  outer  sections,  too  distant  to  be  taken  care  of  by  the  existing  plants.  Also  it  was  real- 
ized that  the  large  amount  of  power  required  to  operate  the  115  miles  of  elevated 
and  subway  railways,  then  proposed,  would  require  either  that  new  direct  current 
plants  be  built  in  outlying  districts  and  the  older  stations  be  modernized  and  enlarged, 
or  that  a  large  central  station  be  built  and  equipped  with  more  modern  type  of  machinery, 
generating  high  tension,  alternating,  3  phase  current,  and  distributing  this  to  substations 
located  along  the  lines  of  development. 

At  these  substations  the  high  tension  3  phase  current  would  be  transformed  to  575  volt 
direct  current  and  supplied  to  the  surface  or  rapid  transit  lines  as  required. 

The  latter  plan  was  adopted,  and  all  suitable  sites  for  the  necessary  buildings  were 
canvassed.  The  properties  purchased  near  Laurel  Street  run  from  Delaware  Avenue  on 
the  east  to  Beach  Street  on  the  west,  200  feet  deep,  with  435  feet  front  on  Beach  Street 
and  415  feet  front  on  Delaware  Avenue.  Adjoining  these  properties  on  the  south  is  the 
old  station  No.  2,  920  North  Delaware  Avenue.  On  the  new  site  is  built  the  first 


section  of  the  plant.  The  future  sections  are  to  be  built  on  the  site  of  the  old  plant,  which 
will  be  replaced  by  a  substation  in  the  Kensington  district,  and  supplied  with  current 
from  the  central  plant. 

The  completed  central  plant  is  to  contain  nine  turbo-generators  of  6000  kilowatts  each 
(nominal  rating).  The  3  phase  current  is  generated  at  13,200  volts  and  the  entire  distribu- 
tion in  the  city  limits  is  by  underground  conduits  and  lead  covered,  paper  insulated,  triple 
conductor  cables. 

The  first  section  of  the  central  plant,  which  is  now  completed  and  in  operation,  con- 
tains three  Westinghouse  turbo-generators,  of  6000  kilowatts  capacity  each.  This  power 
is  supplied  to  substations  located  as  follows: 

820  Sansom  Street 9000  kilowatts  1   These  substations  supply  cur- 

Fifty-sixth  and  Market  Streets , 4500  kilowatts  J  ren'  *°  both  f.urface  «"*  and 

:    rapid  transit  lines. 

Fifty-eighth  and  Woodland  Avenue 3000  kilowatts 

These  substations  supply  cur- 
Fifty-second  and  Lancaster  Avenue 3000  kilowatts 

rent  to  surface  cars  only. 
Thirteenth  and  Snyder  Avenue 3500  kilowatts 

These  substations  also  receive  current  from  the  auxiliary  power  plant  at  Second  and 
Wyoming  Avenue,  containing  11,000  kilowatts  of  3  phase  generating  machinery,  which 
has  been  installed  by  the  Philadelphia  Rapid  Transit  Company  since  1902,  and  which 
supplies  also  the  following  substations: 

Frankford  and  Arrott  Streets 2000  kilowatts 

Chelten  Avenue 4500  kilowatts      These  substations  supply  cur- 

Glenside 2000  kilowatts      rent  to  surface  cars  only. 

Willow  Grove 2000  kilowatts 

The  Philadelphia  Rapid  Transit  Company  now  operates  66,000  kilowatts  of  generat- 
ing machinery, — an  increase  of  34,700  kilowatts  since  1902,  when  it  acquired  the  plants 
of  the  Union  Traction  Company.  It  has  also  acquired  the  plants  of  the  Doylestown  & 
Willow  Grove  and  the  Darby,  Media  &  Chester  Street  Railway,  by  lease  of  these  roads. 

A  considerable  amount  of  new  machinery  has  been  installed  in  the  leased  plants  during 
the  last  six  years,  the  greater  part  of  this  increase  being  for  the  operation  of  surface  cars. 

The  street  level  at  the  Delaware  Avenue  power  house  is  about  +8  feet  (city  datum). 
The  character  of  the  ground,  consisting  of  about  6  feet  of  fill,  7  feet  of  gravel,  12  feet  of 
clay  and  20  feet  of  mud,  with  a  mean  high  water  level  of  — 2\  feet  and  a  mean  low  water 
level  of  — 8J  feet,  necessitated  pile  foundations. 

Concrete  piles  of  the  Raymond  type  were  selected,  and  920  were  set  in  place,  with 
an  average  load  of  33  tons  each.  Concrete  caps  were  placed  on  these  piles,  which  became 


the  footings  for  concrete  piers;  these  piers  being  continued  up  through  the  basement  to 
the  first  floor  level  of  the  boiler  room,  from  which  point  the  skeleton  steel  work  started  and 
continued  to  the  roof. 

The  skeleton  steel  work  construction  on  the  engine  room  side  started  from  the  base- 
ment, the  level  of  which  is  city  datum,  and  continued  to  the  roof. 

Curtain  walls  above  grade  are  of  red  brick  laid  in  red  mortar.  The  arches  also  are 
of  brick.  Terra  cotta  of  the  same  color  as  the  brick  is  used  for  the  trimmings,  the  only 
architectural  adornment  being  the  horizontal  bands  at  the  water  table,  first  floor,  and 
cornice  levels.  This  gives  a  very  satisfactory  appearance  for  a  power  house,  owing  to  the 
fact  that  it  will  not  show  the  dirt  as  much  as  some  lighter  or  more  contrasting  materials. 

Dark  red  "Jewetville"  brick  is  used  for  the  interior  of  the  engine  (or  turbine)  room 
to  the  top  of  the  piers.  The  arches  are  turned  with  buff  brick,  and  the  terra  cotta  trims 
for  the  arches  and  the  cornice  are  also  buff.  Both  the  red  and  the  buff  brick  used  on  the 
interior  are  semi-glazed. 

Roofs  also  are  of  concrete  slabs  with  steel  reinforcement.  The  slabs  are  supported 
on  steel  trusses  with  tar  and  gravel  roofing. 

All  windows  and  skylights  have  metal  frames  glazed  with  wire  glass. 

The  present  steam  plant  of  this  station  consists  of  two  9000  horse-power  single  flow 
and  one  9000  horse-power  double  flow  Westinghouse-Parsons  steam  turbines,  each  of 
these  machines  being  capable  of  developing  50  per  cent,  above  this  rating  if  necessary. 

The  station  is  built  on  the  unit  principle,  each  unit  containing  eight  800  horse-power 
Parker  boilers,  which  are  of  the  double  furnace  superheater  type.  Each  furnace  is  fitted 
with  an  80  square-foot  Roney  stoker.  Each  unit  of  boilers  is  supplied  with  a  reinforced 
concrete  stack  14  feet  in  diameter  by  175  feet  high  above  the  steel  base  on  which  it  is  car- 
ried. The  stacks  are  carried  on  a  framework  of  steel  columns  and  girders  spanning  the 
two  middle  boilers  of  each  unit;  the  base  of  the  stack  being  approximately  50  feet  above  the 
boiler  room  floor,  and  anchored  to  the  steel  supporting  structure  by  thirty  2\  inch  anchor 
bolts.  A  steel  breeching  carries  the  waste  gases  from  each  unit  of  boilers  up  to  the  base 
of  the  stack.  At  the  base  of  the  stack  is  a  special  four-part  wing  damper,  which  is  oper- 
ated by  an  automatic  damper  regulator. 

Coal  is  fed  to  the  boilers  from  two  overhead  bunkers  extending  the  entire  length 
of  the  power  house.  This  method  of  construction  leaves  an  opening  in  the  centre  for  the 
stacks,  and  also  space  for  light  and  ventilation.  Each  bunker  has  a  capacity  of  600  tons  per 
generating  unit — a  total  station  storage  capacity  of  1200  tons  per  unit.  There  is  also  an 
additional  storage  capacity  provided  for  on  the  wharf,  which,  however,  is  used  as  a  reserve. 

The  coal  handling  equipment  consists  of  a  system  of  Webster  bucket  elevators  and 
scraper  conveyors  having  a  normal  capacity  of  about  120  tons  per  hour,  but  capable 


of  being  operated  considerably  beyond  this  rating.  One  elevator  is  erected  in  a  steel 
tower  at  the  north  end  of  the  building,  and  is  arranged  for  taking  coal  from  either  the  rail- 
road or  trolley  coal  cars,  being  provided  with  two  receiving  hoppers. 

The  main  coal  handling  equipment,  however,  is  located  on  Pier  No.  41,  on  the  east 
side  of  Delaware  Avenue.  This  pier  is  400  feet  long  with  an  82  foot  front.  It  contains 
three  railroad  tracks.  Each  track  has  a  reinforced  concrete  dumping  hopper,  which,  by 
means  of  a  system  of  conveyors,  delivers  the  coal  to  a  crusher  and  then  to  the  elevator, 
which  is  operated  on  a  tower  at  the  west  end  of  the  pier.  The  coal  is  elevated  and  con- 
veyed across  the  street  on  an  enclosed  bridge  about  80  feet  above  the  sidewalk,  and  deliv- 
ered to  the  conveyor  system  inside  the  power  house.  Provision  has  been  made  for  handling 
coal  from  barges  as  well  as  from  the  railroad.  A  locomotive  crane,  operated  electrically 
by  means  of  a  third  rail,  is  used  to  unload  the  barges  and  deliver  coal  into  a  specially  de- 
signed 14  ton  car.  It  transfers  the  coal  from  the  crane  to  the  dumping  hoppers  between 
the  tracks,  and  thence  to  the  regular  coal  elevating  system.  This  method  of  receiving 
coal  is  used  at  present  in  preference  to  railroad  delivery. 

The  boiler  room  floor  and  foundations  are  constructed  entirely  of  reinforced  concrete, 
the  design  being  such  that  the  basement  is  left  clear  for  light  and  ventilation. 

Concrete  hoppers  are  provided  to  receive  the  ashes  from  the  stokers.  The  ashes  are 
drawn  out  in  cars  of  special  design.  These  are  operated  over  a  system  of  tracks  and  de- 
liver the  ashes  into  one  of  two  Morse  &  Williams  dumping  bucket  elevators.  These  eleva- 
tors are  operated  by  alternating  current  motors.  They  discharge  into  an  elevated  rein- 
forced concrete  ash  bin,  the  ashes  being  drawn  off  from  this  bin  and  finally  removed  by 
either  railroad  or  trolley  car. 

The  main  steam  piping  is  of  special  soft  steel,  with  Ball  &  Wood  welded  steel 
flanges.  The  fittings  in  the  main  steam  piping  are  made  entirely  of  cast  steel,  of  special 
design  to  insure  them  against  any  possible  damage  from  strains  caused  by  expansion. 
The  gaskets  are  of  the  Government  combination  type,  asbestos  and  copper.  Extra 
size  bolts  are  used  to  make  the  joints.  Chapman  gate  valves  and  Schutte  &  Koerting 
globe  and  angle  valves  are  used  in  the  main  steam  piping.  These  valves  are  all  of 
special  semi-steel,  extra  heavy  pattern,  nickel-bronze  fitted,  and  are  specially  designed  for 
superheated  steam. 

The  main  steam  header  is  supported  in  a  gallery  at  the  west  end  of  the  boiler  room. 
Connection  from  each  unit  of  boilers  is  made  to  this  header  by  a  system  of  bends  to  allow 
for  expansion.  The  header  is  designed  to  be  continuous  only  for  the  first  four  units, 
owing  to  the  expansion  which  must  be  provided  for.  This  main  is  allowed  to  expand 
in  both  directions  from  the  centre  on  roller  guides  under  the  main  fittings.  Connections 
from  this  header  feed  direct  to  the  turbines  from  above  by  means  of  a  long  bend. 


CHARLES  O.  KRUGER 

Second  Vice-President  and  General  Manager 
Philadelphia  Rapid  Transit  Company 


A  small  auxiliary  main  is  placed  in  the  engine  room  basement  to  supply  all  the  aux- 
iliary machinery.  All  auxiliary  piping  is  lap  welded  steel  pipe,  with  rolled  steel  flanges 
of  Vanstone  pattern.  This  main  is  also  constructed  on  the  unit  principle,  provision  being 
made  that  steam  may  always  be  available  from  two  sources  of  supply.  All  steam  piping 
of  this  plant,  both  auxiliary  and  main,  is  designed  to  carry  200  pounds  steam  pressure  per 
square  inch  at  200°  superheat,  and  in  designing  the  piping,  allowance  was  made  to  take 
care  of  the  expansion  resulting  from  this  temperature. 

Each  turbine  is  connected  directly  to  a  Worthington  surface  condenser  having  20,000 
square  feet  of  i  inch  composition  tubes.  It  operates  on  the  dry  vacuum  principle,  using  a 
12  inch  by  24  inch  by  24  inch  Laidlaw-Dunn- Gordon  dry  vacuum  pump.  The  water  of 
condensation  is  removed  from  the  condenser  and  delivered  to  the  feed  heater  by  means 
of  a  5  inch  motor-driven  Worthington  turbine  pump.  The  feed  heater  for  each  unit  is  a 
6000  horse-power  Hoppes,  open  type,  and  is  carried  on  a  gallery  directly  beneath  the  engine 
room  floor  above  the  boiler  feed  pump. 

The  circulating  water  for  the  condensers  is  pumped  from  the  river  by  means  of  a 
24  inch  Worthington  volute  pump,  one  pump  for  each  condenser.  Each  pump  is  driven 
by  a  14  inch  by  14  inch  high  speed  Reeves  engine.  Two  reinforced  concrete  conduits 
5  feet  wide  by  8  feet  high  are  provided  to  conduct  the  water  from  the  river  to  the  building. 
These  intake  conduits  are  made  in  duplicate  and  the  pumps  are  provided  with  duplicate 
connections  to  allow  for  cleaning  one  conduit  at  a  time  without  disturbing  the  operation  of 
the  plant.  The  screens  and  sluice  gates  in  the  conduits  are  also  arranged  for  cleaning  either 
side  independently.  The  warm  water  from  the  condensers  is  returned  to  the  river  by 
one  large  reinforced  concrete  conduit  8  feet  by  8  feet,  which  takes  the  water  and  sewage 
from  the  entire  station. 

The  general  water  service  for  the  plant  is  pumped  direct  from  the  river  by  means  of 
two  10  inch  by  14  inch  by  12  inch  Duplex  Scranton  steam  pumps,  one  pump  being  of 
sufficient  size  to  handle  the  ordinary  requirements  of  the  plant,  the  other  being  used  as  a 
reserve. 

Wherever  possible,  the  auxiliary  machinery  is  steam  driven,  on  account  of  its  relia- 
bility and  freedom  from  shut-down  in  case  of  mishap  to  any  of  the  electrical  equipment. 
All  the  auxiliary  machinery  is  designed  to  operate  with  superheated  steam,  and  the  exhaust 
from  the  same  is  returned  to  the  feed  heater,  where  it  is  all  utilized  in  heating  the  feed 
water  for  the  boilers.  This  can  readily  be  done,  as  no  economizers  are  used.  The  Parker 
boiler  is  of  such  a  design  as  to  lower  the  flue  gases  to  a  point  where  an  economizer  would 
be  of  little  value. 

An  extensive  oil  system  is  provided  in  connection  with  the  turbine  plant.  This  sys- 
tem has  a  capacity  of  300  barrels  of  oil.  A  large  storage  tank  is  provided  in  the  upper 


gallery  of  the  station,  and  from  this  point  pipe  lines  supply  the  main  bearings  of  the  tur- 
bines. The  storage  tank  is  of  such  a  height  as  to  have  approximately  20  pounds  pressure 
available  at  the  turbines.  The  return  oil  is  carried  to  a  large  receiving  tank,  8  feet  by  7 
feet  by  1 6  feet.  This  tank  is  fitted  with  a  series  of  baffles  and  settling  compartments  to 
trap  out  the  water  and  sediment  in  the  oil.  Each  compartment  is  provided  with  an  8 
inch  pipe  by-pass,  so  arranged  that  any  compartment  or  all  of  this  tank  may  be  by-passed 
for  repair  and  cleaning.  After  passing  through  this  settling  tank,  the  oil  is  pumped  through 
a  system  of  cooling  coils  on  its  way  to  the  storage  tank  in  the  upper  gallery.  The  sedi- 
ment and  water  collected  in  the  bottom  of  the  settling  tank  is  pumped  by  an  auxiliary 
pump,  and  passed  through  a  series  of  Burt  automatic  filters,  and  the  filtrate  is  again 
pumped  into  the  general  oil  system.  Additional  tanks  and  pumps  are  provided  for  receiv- 
ing new  oil  and  for  drawing  off  old  oil  from  the  system,  and  also  for  catching  any  oil  which 
might  overflow  from  the  upper  storage  tank.  All  pumps  are  in  duplicate. 

In  addition  to  the  main  oil  system  which  supplies  the  turbines,  there  is  an  auxiliary 
gravity  system  to  supply  oil  for  the  auxiliary  machinery.  This  is  so  arranged  that  all  the 
oil  used  in  the  plant  is  delivered  direct  to  the  machine  where  it  is  required. 

The  entire  oil  system,  both  main  and  auxiliary,  is  so  piped  and  cross-connected  that 
any  part  of  it  may  be  taken  out  of  service  for  cleaning  or  repairs  without  interfering  with 
the  operation  of  the  plant.  All  screwed  joints  are  made  up  with  litharge  and  glycerine, 
and  all  flanged  joints  with  corrugated  lead  gaskets. 

The  water  from  the  feed  heaters  is  pumped  into  the  boilers  by  means  of  a  16  inch  by 
10  inch  by  24  inch  Scranton  Duplex  outside  packed  ram  pattern  boiler  feed  pump,  one 
of  these  pumps  being  provided  for  each  unit.  The  pumps  are  specially  designed  with 
piston  valves,  and  adapted  to  operate  under  the  high  steam  pressure  and  superheat.  The 
feed  lines  are  in  duplicate  and  cross-connected  in  such  a  manner  that  any  part  of  the  feed 
system  may  be  repaired  without  stopping  the  water  supply  to  the  boilers.  The  large  pipes 
are  of  extra  heavy  lap  welded  pipe,  with  extra  heavy  Vanstone  flanges ;  the  smaller  sizes  being 
extra  heavy  brass  pipe  with  extra  heavy  brass  fittings. 

In  addition  to  the  auxiliary  machinery  already  mentioned,  two  13  inch  by  24  inch 
by  14  inch  Westinghouse  direct  connected  compound  engines  are  used  to  drive  the  exciter 
generators.  These  are  located  on  the  engine  room  floor  between  the  main  generating 
units,  and  are  operated  at  high  pressure,  exhausting  into  the  feed  heaters. 

Beside  the  steam  driven  exciter  units,  motor  driven  exciter  units  are  provided,  a  de- 
scription of  which  will  be  found  below. 

The  following  table  gives  the  list  of  the  machines,  with  sizes,  which  constitute 
one  generating  unit.  The  station  is  designed  for  nine  complete  units.  Two  units  of 
the  boiler  room  have  been  installed  complete,  and  three  units  of  the  generating  room. 


Turbine — Westinghouse-Parsons,  6000  kilowatt. 

Condenser — Worthington,  20,000  square  feet  surface. 

Circulating  Pump — Worthington,  24  inch  volute.         i 

Circulating  Pump  Engine — Reeves,  14  inch  by  14  inch.  : 

Dry  Vacuum  Pump — Laidlaw-Dunn-Gordon,  12  inch  by  24  inch  by  24  inch. 

Hot  Well  Pump — Worthington,  5  inch  Turbine  (motor  driven). 

Heater — Hoppes  open  6000  horse-power.    Class  R,  Form  E,  845  square  feet. 

Boiler  Feed  Pump — Scranton  Duplex  Ram,  16  inch  by  10  inch  by  24  inch. 

Boilers — 8  Parker  Boilers  (800  horse-power  each),  with  superheater. 

Stokers — 16  Roney  (80  square  feet),  2  per  boiler  (4  driving  engines). 

Stacks — Reinforced  concrete,  14  feet  diameter  by  175  feet  (225  feet  above  grate). 

The  three  main  generators  are  of  the  revolving  field  Westinghouse  type,  direct 
connected  to  steam  turbines,  and  develop  3  phase  25  cycle  alternating  current  at  13,200 
volts. 

Each  of  these  generators  requires  about  200  amperes  at  no  volts  to  excite  the  rotating 
field.  To  supply  this  excitation  there  are  installed  two  150  kilowatt  Westinghouse  no 
volt  direct  current  generators,  direct  connected  to  240  horse-power  Westinghouse  com- 
pound engines.  There  are  also  two  25  kilowatt  Westinghouse  no  volt  generators,  direct 
connected  to  440  volt  3  phase  50  horse-power  induction  motors.  The  induction  motor 
generator  sets  are  connected  to  the  440  volt  bus  bars  through  Cutler-Hammer  automatic 
remote  controlled  starters,  and  are  so  arranged  that  they  can  be  used  for  exciting  the 
fields  of  any  of  the  alternators,  or  to  supply  current  for  lighting  the  building.  The  wiring 
of  the  steam  driven  exciters  is  such  that  their  current  can  be  used  for  exciting  the  fields 
of  any  or  all  of  the  alternators,  as  well  as  to  supply  the  power  for  the  lighting  of  the 
building. 

The  coal  and  ash  handling  apparatus  is  operated  by  Westinghouse  induction 
motors,  of  which  there  are  four  20  and  two  25  and  three  40  horse-power  installed. 
The  power  for  these  is  obtained  from  two  sets  of  transformers,  each  containing  three 
200  kilowatt  13,200  volt  to  440  volt  transformers.  These  transformers  are  of  the  air 
cooled  type,  the  air  for  cooling  them  being  furnished  by  either  of  two  blower  outfits,  each 
of  which  is  capable  of  supplying  sufficient  air  to  cool  all  the  six  transformers.  The  blow- 
ers are  direct  connected  to  4^  horse-power  440  volt  induction  motors. 

All  the  alternating  current  induction  motors  in  this  station  are  connected  to  a  440 
volt  bus  bar  through  Cutler-Hammer  automatic  remote  controlled  starters,  specially  de- 
signed for  this  service.  As  unskilled  labor  is  usually  employed  for  handling  the  coal  and 
ashes  of  a  power  house,  it  was  deemed  advisable  to  make  the  system  of  control  as  simple 
as  possible.  The  automatic  starters  are  in  the  basement  of  the  power  house.  Each  is 


connected  with  its  motor  by  a  3  phase  cable.  A  ten  pair  cable  connects  the  control  switches 
with  the  starters. 

The  no  volt  control  circuit  is  supplied  by  the  storage  batteries  used  for  operating 
the  oil  switches.  The  men  operating  the  coal  drag,  elevator,  crusher,  etc.,  can  start  or 
stop  any  or  all  of  them  by  simply  turning  a  small  snap  switch.  Most  of  the  motors  have 
two  or  more  points  of  control.  For  example,  there  is  a  switch  at  the  bottom  and  another 
at  the  top  of  the  coal  elevator,  and  one  inside  the  power  house  near  the  short  drag  for 
controlling  the  elevator.  As  the  switches  are  wired  in  series,  the  elevator  can  only  be 
started  from  the  switch  where  it  is  stopped. 

The  current  from  the  main  generators  goes  through  the  current  transformers,  which 
are  set  in  inverted  ducts  under  the  engine  room  floor,  to  the  generator  oil  switches;  thence 
to  the  generator  bus  bars;  and  then,  by  means  of  either  of  two  selector  switches,  to  the 
northeast  or  the  northwest  main  bus.  The  feeders  are  grouped  together  on  feeder  buses, 
seven  in  a  group.  The  feeder  buses  are  connected  with  either  of  the  main  buses  by  selector 
oil  switches.  The  generator  and  selector  switches  are  each  rated  at  500  amperes  per 
phase.  The  feeder  oil  switches  are  rated  at  300  amperes  per  phase,  and  the  selector 
switches  for  the  feeder  buses  are  rated  at  1200  amperes  per  phase. 

All  the  oil  switches  are  of  the  General  Electric  Type  "F,"  Form  H-3,  motor  operated, 
remote  controlled.  The  switches  for  controlling  them  are  on  a  small  bench  board  placed 
in  front  of  the  instrument  board  on  the  switchboard  gallery.  The  operator,  from  the 
instruments,  has  an  exact  indication  of  what  each  generator  and  feeder  circuit  is  doing, 
and  the  switches  give  him  absolute  control  of  these  circuits  at  the  same  time. 

Each  generator  and  feeder  circuit  is  equipped  with  an  overload  time-limit  relay  of 
the  bellows  type,  as  manufactured  by  the  General  Electric  Company.  If  an  oil  switch 
is  opened  by  the  overload  relay  an  alarm  is  sounded  and  a  lamp  lighted,  indicating  the 
generator  or  feeder  group. 

The  power  for  operating  the  oil  switches  is  obtained  from  two  storage  batteries  (one 
being  a  reserve)  placed  in  the  top  gallery.  Each  battery  consists  of  56  Type  "F," 
nine  plate  chloride  accumulators,  the  size  of  plate  being  n  inches  by  icj  inches,  with 
a  normal  discharge  rate  of  40  amperes  for  eight  hours. 

The  storage  batteries  are  charged  by  two  Westinghouse  6  kilowatt  125  volt  gener- 
ators, installed  on  the  switchboard  gallery.  Each  is  direct  connected  to  a  10  horse-power, 
440  volt,  3  phase  motor.  These  generators  are  so  arranged  that  they  may  also  be  oper- 
ated in  parallel  with  the  storage  batteries. 

The  field  rheostats  of  the  main  generators  are  placed  in  the  top  gallery,  and  on  the 
side  of  the  face  plate  is  a  small  no  volt  motor  which  moves  the  contact  arm  on  the  segments. 
This  motor  is  controlled  from  the  bench  board,  and  the  operator  can  increase  or  decrease 


ALEXANDER  RENNICK 

TLird  Vice-President  and  Comptroller  Philadelphia  Rapid  Transit 

Company 


the  resistance  in  series  with  the  field  circuit  as  may  be  necessary.  A  small  indicating 
lamp,  in  front  of  the  switch  that  controls  the  rheostat  motor,  lights  momentarily  every  time 
the  contact  passes  over  a  segment.  Alongside  of  the  rheostat  control  switch  is  the  governor 
control  switch.  This  switch  controls  the  small  motor  which  increases  or  decreases  the 
tension  on  the  governor  spring,  varying  the  amount  of  the  load  taken  by  the  turbine. 

Power  is  supplied  to  the  Subway  and  Elevated  from  the  substations  at  820  Sansom 
Street,  and  Market  and  Allison  Streets  in  West  Philadelphia. 

The  Sansom  Street  substation  is  a  substantial  brick  building,  absolutely  fire-proof, 
with  reinforced  concrete  floors,  columns  and  roof.  It  is  built  on  the  site  of  the  old  Philadel- 
phia Traction  Company's  cable  power  house. 

There  are  at  present  installed  six  1500  kilowatt  Westinghouse  3  phase  25  cycle 
250  R.  P.  M.  600  volt  shunt  wound  rotary  converters.  The  station  is  laid  out  to  accom- 
modate two  additional  rotary  converters  and  auxiliary  apparatus  of  the  same  size. 

The  voltage  is  reduced  for  each  of  the  rotaries  by  three  550  kilowatt  Westinghouse 
13,200  volt  to  380  volt  25  cycle  air  blast  transformers.  The  transformers  are  set  directly 
over  an  air  chamber  with  a  cross-section  of  115  square  feet.  There  are  two  of  these  air 
ducts,  one  on  either  side  of  the  station,  and  they  are  connected  by  an  air  chamber  of  25 
square  feet  cross-section,  built  under  the  basement  floor,  with  a  door  at  each  end.  The 
two  air  chambers  can  be  operated  separately  or  as  one  by  opening  the  doors. 

This  station,  although  built  and  operated  as  a  unit,  may  be  divided  in  half  and 
operated  as  two  independent  substations,  and  in  case  of  trouble  is  sometimes  so  operated. 
The  two  rows  of  rotary  converters  are  in  the  centre,  and  on  either  side  are  the  air  chambers 
with  the  transformers,  and  beyond  the  transformers  are  the  high  tension  bus  bars.  The 
high  tension  bus  bars  are  connected  together  through  an  oil  switch  and  cables  placed  in 
inverted  ducts  underneath  the  floor. 

Through  the  centre  of  the  building,  running  north  and  south,  there  are  five  columns 
which  support  the  crane  runways,  one  crane  spanning  the  rotary  converters  and  trans- 
formers on  each  side.  These  cranes  are  of  the  3  motor  type,  with  25  tons  capacity.  They 
span  26  feet  ij  inches.  Over  the  bus  bars  on  each  side  there  is  a  single  "I"  beam  crane, 
with  a  standard  Yale  &  Towne  i-ton  Triplex  trolley  block. 

The  air  for  cooling  the  transformers  is  supplied  by  three  90  inch  American  blower  fans. 
Each  has  a  capacity  of  20,000  cubic  feet  of  air  per  minute  at  one  ounce  pressure  on  con- 
tinuous duty.  These  fans  are  driven  by  380  volt  3  phase  25  cycle  1 7  £  horse-power  induction 
motors,  and  are  so  arranged  that  any  one  or  all  of  them  can  be  run  from  the  transformers 
of  any  rotary  converter  that  may  be  in  service. 

Only  the  positive  cables  of  the  rotary  converter  are  taken  to  the  switchboard.  The 
negative  cables  go  to  a  pedestal  switch  placed  alongside  the  rotary,  and  thence  to  the 


negative  bar,  which  is  placed  directly  beneath  the  machines.  From  this  negative  bar 
a  connection  is  run  down  into  a  cable  pit,  and  the  incoming  negative  cables  are  brought 
here  through  ducts  laid  in  the  floor.  Provision  has  been  made  for  eight  incoming  high 
tension  cables,  and  the  bus  bar  is  broken  up  into  sections  by  sectionalizing  switches 
between  adjacent  sets  of  feeder  and  machine  switches. 

The  oil  switches  are  all  300  ampere  General  Electric  Type  "F,"  Form  H-3,  except 
the  tie  switch,  which  is  500  amperes  capacity. 

Two  storage  batteries  are  placed  in  the  basement,  each  consisting  of  fifty-six  7!  inch 
by  7!  inch  storage  batteries;  the  normal  discharge  capacity  being  15  amperes  for  8  hours. 
These  cells  are  Type  "E,"  seven  plate  chloride  accumulators.  A  2  kilowatt  electro- 
dynamic  motor  generator  is  provided  for  charging  the  batteries. 

The  switchboard  for  the  control  of  all  of  the  rotaries,  together  with  the  control  of  the 
cable  and  rotary  oil  switches,  is  on  the  operating  floor.  The  alternating  current  instruments 
and  switches  are  on  the  ends,  with  the  heavy  direct  current  machine  panels  next,  and  in 
the  centre  a  rotary  starting  panel.  This  panel  is  equipped  with  a  duplicate  starting  ap- 
paratus, with  provision  for  starting  the  rotary  converters  either  from  the  bus  bars  or  from 
the  induction  motor  generator  provided  for  that  purpose.  This  motor  generator  is  a 
Westinghouse  650  to  550  volt  shunt  wound  generator,  direct  connected  to  a  150  horse- 
power 3  phase  380  volt  25  cycle  induction  motor,  having  three  60  kilowatt  13,200  to 
380  volt  transformers. 

The  upper  deck  of  the  switchboard  contains  all  the  outgoing  feeder  panels.  Each 
feeder  panel  has  a  capacity  of  2000  amperes,  and  is  arranged  to  take  two  cables  of  normal 
capacity  of  1000  amperes.  The  entire  switchboard  is  built  of  pink  Tennessee  marble, 
and  all  bus  bars  are  of  aluminium. 

The  West  Philadelphia  Substation  (Substation  No.  21),  faces  on  Market  Street, 
running  parallel  with  Allison  Street.  The  front  elevation  is  very  attractive,  constructed 
of  brick  with  a  terra  cotta  cornice,  with  a  central  doorway  16  feet  wide.  The  operating 
floor  is  4  feet  above  the  level  of  the  pavement.  By  the  doorway  there  is  a  recess  the  width 
of  the  door,  10  feet  long  and  4  feet  deep,  permitting  of  a  wagon  being  backed  into  the 
building,  so  that  any  heavy  machinery  can  be  lifted  by  the  crane  and  deposited  in  its  proper 
position. 

This  is  a  3  motor  crane  of  25  tons  capacity  and  36  feet  span.  The  crane  runway  is 
of  reinforced  concrete  supported  on  one  side  by  pilasters  built  in  the  wall,  and  on  the  other 
side  by  brick  piers,  which  also  support  the  two  sections  of  the  roof. 

The  roof  over  the  main  portion  of  the  building  has  a  span  of  38  feet,  and  is  built 
of  reinforced  concrete  with  a  slag  covering.  The  roof  over  the  oil  switch  and  bus  bar 
compartments  is  also  built  of  reinforced  concrete  with  a  slag  top,  and  has  a  span  of  1 5  feet. 


There  are  at  present  installed  three  1500  kilowatt  600  volt  Westinghouse  rotary 
converters,  but  provision  is  made  for  three  more  units  of  the  same  capacity.  The  rotaries 
each  receive  their  power  from  three  550  kilowatt  13,200  volt  to  380  volt  Westinghouse 
air  blast  transformers. 

The  high  tension  bus  bar  compartment  is  built  of  brick,  with  the  disconnecting  switches 
on  one  side  and  the  oil  switch  compartments  on  the  other.  Between  each  set  of  cable  and 
converter  oil  switches  the  bus  bar  is  divided  into  sections  connected  by  sectionalizing 
switches.  Over  the  oil  switches  is  a  i-ton  Yale  &  Towne  Triplex  trolley  block  on  single 
"I"  beam  crane. 

High  tension  cables  enter  the  building  through  ducts  on  the  basement  floor,  and  rise  . 
into  compartments  built  in  the  operating  floor.     In  these  compartments  are  placed  the 
cable  current  transformers.    The  cables  then  connect  to  the  cable  oil  switch,  passing 
under  the  high  tension  bus  bar  to  the  cable  disconnecting  switches,  and  then  through 
heavy  porcelain  insulators  to  the  three  high  tension  bus  bars. 

The  machine  disconnecting  switches  connect  to  the  high  tension  bus  bars  on  the 
side  opposite  to  the  cable  disconnecting  switches.  From  the  disconnecting  switches  the 
machine  cables  pass  under  the  bus  bar  compartment  to  the  machine  oil  switch,  and  thence 
to  the  machine  current  transformers,  and  to  the  main  transformers  over  the  air  duct. 
The  machine  current  transformers  are  in  ducts  built  in  the  floor,  and  covered  with  slate 
slabs  the  same  as  the  cable  current  transformers,  except  that  they  are  on  the  opposite  side 
of  the  high  tension  bus  bar. 

Under  the  transformers  is  the  air  duct,  which  has  a  cross-section  of  no  square  feet. 

The  oil  switches  are  motor  operated,  of  the  General  Electric  Type  "F,"  Form  H-3; 
remote  control,  triple  pole,  single  throw,  capacity  300  amperes  per  phase.  The  power  for 
operating  these  switches  is  furnished  by  56  Type  "E"  seven  plate  chloride  accumulator 
cells;  size  of  plate  7!  inches  by  7!  inches;  normal  discharge  for  8  hours,  15  amperes. 

The  negative  side  of  all  the  lighting  in  the  building  is  brought  to  a  number  of  3-way 
switches.  The  normal  position  of  these  switches  connects  the  lights  to  the  ground.  The 
other  position  connects  the  negative  side  of  the  lights  to  the  positive  of  the  battery,  and 
the  amount  of  charging  current  can  be  varied  at  the  will  of  the  operator  by  connecting  as 
many  circuits  as  desired  to  the  battery. 

In  the  basement,  under  the  bus  bar  compartment,  are  installed  two  90  inch  American 
blower  fans  driven  by  17  J  horse-power  Westinghouse  induction  motors.  These  fans 
each  have  a  capacity  of  20,000  cubic  feet  of  air  (at  one  ounce  pressure)  per  minute. 

The  wiring  to  the  rotary  converters  is  so  arranged  that  any  of  the  rotaries  may  be 
started  from  the  direct  current  bus  bar  or  by  the  motor  generator  installed  for  this  purpose. 
The  generator  is  100  kilowatt,  shunt  wound,  650  to  550  volts,  and  is  direct  connected  to  a 


150  horse-power  380  volt  3  phase  induction  motor.     The  induction  motor  is  connected  to 
three  60  kilowatt  13,200  to  380  volt  air  blast  transformers  through  an  auto  starter. 

The  switchboard  is  59  feet  2  inches  long,  and  is  built  of  pink  Tennessee  marble,  set 
on  a  marble  base.  The  alternating  current  instruments,  together  with  the  oil  switch  con- 
trolling switches,  are  on  the  end  furthest  from  the  door.  The  machine  panels  are  in  the 
middle  of  the  board,  and  have  a  4000  ampere  Cutter  overload  and  reverse  current  breaker 
on  the  top  slab  of  each  panel.  On  the  middle  slab  is  a  5000  ampere  Weston  Type  "B" 
ammeter,  placed  alongside  a  General  Electric  3000  ampere  high  capacity  wattmeter. 
Below  the  wattmeter  is  placed  the  field  switch.  The  bottom  slab  holds  the  contact  arm 
and  studs  of  the  field  rheostat,  and  the  direct  current  rotary  starting  switch.  The  other 
end  of  the  switchboard  is  made  up  of  sixteen  2000  ampere  feeder  panels.  Each  panel  is 
arranged  to  take  two  cables  of  1000  amperes  at  normal  rated  capacity.  The  switches 
have  a  normal  rating  of  2000  amperes,  and  are  the  Anderson  quick  break  type.  All  in- 
strument and  switch  lugs  are  finished  smooth  and  connected  to  the  bus  bars  by  special 
clamp  lugs.  The  bus  bars  on  this  board  are  all  made  of  aluminium. 


/' 


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W"e- 

0f1*lA 


R.  B.  SELFRIDGE 

Secretary  and  Treasurer  Philadelphia  Rapid  Transit  Company 


CONSTRUCTION    OF    THE    SUBWAY 

'HE  Philadelphia  Subway  occupies  the  bed  of  Market 
Street,  from  the  Delaware  River  on  the  east  to  the  Schuyl- 
kill  River  on  the  west,  passing  around  City  Hall  by  a  loop 
in  the  bed  of  Juniper  Street,  Filbert  Street,  and  West  and 
South  Penn  Square. 

East  of  Fifteenth  Street  the  two  local  tracks  are  carried 
around  the  City  Hall  below  the  main  Subway  tracks,  termi- 
nating in  a  substation  at  Juniper  Street.  The  east  Market 
Street  section  of  the  Subway  contains  two  tracks. 
West  of  Fifteenth  Street  there  are  four  tracks.  Two  of  these  are  a  continuation 
of  the  tracks  in  the  east  Market  Street  section,  connecting  with  the  West  Philadelphia 
Elevated  to  Sixty-ninth  Street.  The  other  two  are  for  the  local  cars  that  run  west  from 
Juniper  Street,  cross  the  Schuylkill  at  grade,  and  continue  on  the  surface  tracks  on 
Woodland  and  Lancaster  Avenues. 

Just  east  of  Front  Street,  the  Subway  turns  north  to  Arch  Street,  running  thence  to 
the  terminal  at  Delaware  Avenue  and  South  Street  on  an  elevated  structure. 

Interest  in  the  Subway  centres  largely  in  this  eastern  section,  built  for  the  Phila- 
delphia Rapid  Transit  Company  by  the  Millard  Construction  Company.  Its  engineering 
problems  are  unique.  It  underlies  a  mile  and  more  of  the  busiest  street  of  the  city. 
The  route  is  lined  on  both  sides  with  large  buildings,  many  of  them  converted  and 
added  to  from  time  to  time,  on  old  foundations  that  were  a  constant  challenge  to  engineer- 
ing skill.  The  street  was  riddled  with  a  century's  accumulation  of  gas  and  water  pipes, 
sewers,  electric  conduits,  and  fire  mains,  in  places  too  close  together  to  admit  a  hand 
between  them.  They  seriously  hampered  the  excavating  and  the  proper  placing  of 
structural  material. 

The  problem  before  the  Millard  Company's  engineers  was  that  of  building  a  double 
track  Subway  and  of  reconstructing  the  sewer  system,  building  an  adequate  concrete 
sewer  on  each  side  behind  the  walls  of  the  train  tube ;  and  also  the  rebuilding  and  rear- 
ranging of  the  telephone,  telegraph,  electric  power  and  light,  gas,  water,  and  high  pres- 
sure fire  systems  without  interrupting  the  service  in  any  of  them. 

The  east  Market  Street  section  of  the  Subway  is  5,888  feet  long  from  Thirteenth  Street 
to  the  portal.  Its  general  width,  out  to  out  of  walls,  is  about  37  feet,  and  the  clear  head 
room  is  14  feet.  The  distance,  centre  to  centre  of  tracks,  is  13  feet  3  inches. 

The  Subway  is  a  rectangular  tunnel  of  reinforced  concrete.  The  floor  is  flat,  with 
steel  supports  for  the  ties  embedded  in  the  concrete.  The  structural  thickness  of  the  walls 


is  16  inches,  disregarding  minor  variations.  The  roof  is  a  flat  slab  resting  on  the  side 
walls  and  on  the  central  columns. 

Drainage  is  provided  under  the  whole  length  of  the  west-bound  track.  Inlets  with 
grated  covers  are  sunk  every  50  feet  in  the  centre  of  both  tracks,  those  on  the  east-bound 
track  being  cross-connected  to  the  main  drain.  The  whole  flow  from  the  east  Market 
Street  section  is  collected  in  a  well  at  Fifth  Street,  whence  it  is  discharged  into  the 
north  sewer  by  electric  pumps. 

All  of  the  structural  steel  used  in  the  Subway  is  covered  with  concrete,  which  pro- 
tects the  steel.  The  only  iron  visible  is  at  the  stations.  A  cast  iron  fender  is  provided  for 
the  foot  of  each  column  on  the  station  platform,  to  protect  it  against  the  wear  of  the  feet. 

The  eastern  section  has  five  stations — at  Second,  Fifth,  Eighth,  Eleventh  and  Thir- 
teenth Streets.  Ample  entrances  and  exits  are  had  through  openings  in  the  street  and 
through  passages  to  the  chief  department  stores. 

The  two  tracks  are  separated  by  a  wall  from  the  portal  to  Letitia  Street,  and  westward 
of  that  point  by  a  line  of  columns,  which  practically  subdivides  the  Subway  into  two  longi- 
tudinal compartments.  Four  places  occur  on  the  line  where  the  roof  has  been  built  in  a 
single  span,  the  centre  columns  having  been  omitted.  At  these  points  are  to  be  placed 
crossovers  from  one  track  to  the  other. 

Station  platforms  are  350  feet  long — long  enough  for  a  train  of  eight  cars,  should  the 
conditions  demand  it.  Near  the  edge  of  the  platform  anti-slipping  strips  of  iron  and 
carborundum  are  embedded  in  the  concrete  flush  with  the  floor. 

The  stations  at  Eighth  and  Eleventh  Streets  are  provided  with  overpassages,  or  bridges, 
giving  access  to  both  the  east-bound  and  west-bound  platforms  from  either  side  of  the 
street. 

The  station  at  Thirteenth  Street  has  an  underpassage,  leading  from  the  local  platform 
level  of  the  City  Hall  section  to  both  the  east-bound  and  west-bound  platforms  of  the  East 
Market  Street  section. 

All  the  stairways  in  the  Subway  are  of  reinforced  concrete,  with  anti-slipping  strips  let 
into  the  treads. 

The  width  of  the  stations  is  variable.  Those  at  Eighth  and  Eleventh  Streets  are 
100  feet  wide,  occupying  generally  the  entire  width  between  the  house  lines  of  Market 
Street.  At  Fifth  Street  the  sewers  on  either  side  of  the  street  occupy  the  space  between 
foundation  walls  of  the  houses  and  the  back  of  the  station  walls,  and  at  Second  Street 
the  general  width  of  the  station  is  somewhat  less  than  the  width  of  the  street. 

The  sewers  follow  generally  lines  distant  25  feet  from  the  centre  of  Market  Street  on 
each  side  of  the  Subway.  They  either  pass  below  the  station  platforms,  as  at  Second 
Street,  Eighth  Street,  Eleventh  Street  and  Thirteenth  Street;  or  are  deflected,  as  at  Fifth 


WILLIAM  S.  TWINING 

Ckiel  Engineer  Philadelphia  Rapid  Transit  Company 


Street,  so  as  to  pass  between  the  foundation  walls  on  each  side  of  the  street  and  the  outside 
of  the  station  walls.  Both  sewers  vary  in  shape  and  cross-section.  They  are  7  feet  by 
7  feet  at  Front  Street,  and  gradually  reduce  toward  the  western  end  of  the  drainage  area, 
the  north  side  sewer  terminating  in  a  section  of  rectangular  shape,  4  feet  by  3  feet  6 J  inches, 
and  the  south  side  sewer  terminating  in  a  junction  chamber,  which  gathers  the  flow  from 
City  Hall  and  South  Juniper  Street.  At  Sixth  Street  on  the  south  sewer,  a  junction 
chamber  is  built  to  receive  a  future  low  level  sewer. 

Intercepting  chambers  are  built  in  both  the  main  sewers  at  Letitia  Street.  A  cast  iron 
pipe  sewer,  running  at  right  angles  to  the  main  sewers,  connects  these  sewers  with  each  other 
and  with  a  3  foot  diameter  sewer  that  parallels  the  north  sewer  to  a  point  near  Delaware 
Avenue,  where  it  joins  a  sewer  which  discharges  at  the  pier  head  line  in  the  Delaware 
River. 

The  Subway  structure  in  general  is  built  of  reinforced  concrete,  and  the  stations  of 
reinforced  concrete  and  structural  steel.  The  sewers  are  built  of  reinforced  concrete, 
except  where  cast  iron  pipe  has  been  substituted  in  a  few  places. 

The  material  penetrated  has  been  principally  sand,  gravel,  and  clay,  with  occasional 
pockets  of  running  sand,  and  with  comparatively  little  water. 

The  specifications  provided  that  the  entire  work  of  construction  should  be  done  under 
cover  of  a  wooden  deck,  to  be  placed  at  the  level  of  the  original  surface  of  the  street,  so 
as  to  disturb  traffic  as  little  as  possible,  and  not  to  cut  off  ingress  and  egress  to  the  prop- 
erties abutting  on  the  work.  The  quickest  method  was  found  to  be  to  excavate  to  a  depth 
of  16  feet  below  the  surface  in  open  cut,  after  which  the  cut  was  decked  over,  and  the 
material  removed  from  below  this  depth  through  hatch  holes,  either  previously  prepared  or 
cut  in  the  deck  as  needed.  The  width  of  the  trench  varied,  but  the  length  of  the  cut  oper- 
ated on  at  one  time  was  about  32  feet,  for  convenience  of  handling. 

Prior  to  beginning  the  work,  and  also  during  the  early  stages,  various  methods  of 
excavating  were  considered.  It  early  became  apparent  that  only  the  most  primitive 
methods  were  possible,  and  the  pick  and  shovel  was  adopted.  The  timbering,  which 
was  a  necessary  part  of  the  work,  as  well  as  the  underground  structures,  prevented  the 
use  of  the  ordinary  excavating  machinery. 

The  excavated  earth  was  shovelled  into  one-half  yard  dumping  buckets  and  hoisted 
to  the  surface,  where  it  was  loaded  into  wagons  for  removal  to  the  dumps. 

A  stiff  leg  derrick,  with  a  35  foot  boom,  having  a  bull  wheel  and  mounted  on  a  movable 
carriage,  with  a  house  enclosing  the  operating  machinery,  was  used.  The  maximum 
capacity  of  the  machine  was  about  125  cubic  yards  per  10  hours ;  but  this  was  reduced 
one-half  on  the  average  by  the  hindrance  of  the  underground  structures.  The  machinery 
consisted  of  a  double  drum  hoist,  with  an  independent  swinging  gear  provided  with  foot 


power  and  electric  brakes,  and  operated  by  a  25  horse-power  motor.  Direct  current  was 
used  at  550  volts. 

The  total  excavation  was  in  the  neighborhood  of  400,000  cubic  yards,  or  about 
25,000  cubic  yards  to  each  machine. 

Owing  to  different  underground  conditions,  different  methods  of  timbering  had  to 
be  used  from  block  to  block.  Sometimes  the  same  method  was  not  used  throughout  the 
entire  length  of  one  block.  The  entire  work  comes  under  the  head  of  one  or  other  of 
the  following  systems: 

ist.  Building  each  of  the  sewers  separately,  and  then  the  entire  cross-section  of  the 
Subway  at  one  operation. 

2d.  Building  the  Subway  wall  and  sewer  on  one  side  of  the  street,  and  the  sewer  only 
on  the  other  ;  the  remaining  wall  and  roof  of  the  Subway  in  a  subsequent  operation. 

3d.  Building  both  the  Subway  wall  and  sewer  on  each  side  of  the  street;  the  roof  in 
a  subsequent  operation. 

The  second  system  was  used  on  by  far  the  largest  portion  of  the  standard  Subway 

The  timbering  at  the  stations  as  a  rule  required  special  handling,  so  as  to  clear  not 
only  the  underground  structures,  but  also  the  structural  steel  work  as  far  as  possible. 

All  of  the  timber  used  for  shoring  and  bracing,  excepting  that  for  stringers  under 
the  rails,  was  short-leaf  Virginia  and  North  Carolina  pine. 

Systems  of  timbering  are  usually  designed  to  follow  what  is  known  as  "good  practice," 
rather  than  to  accord  with  the  theories  of  earth  pressure.  The  sizes  of  the  timbers  were 
adapted  to  the  material  of  the  excavation,  and  also  the  weight  of  the  buildings  on  the 
banks,  as  well  as  to  the  width  and  depth  of  the  ditch.  They  were  first  determined  theo- 
retically for  certain  assumed  conditions,  and  afterwards  so  modified  as  to  accord  with  best 
practice  in  this  line  of  work.  -t 

The  upper  two  sets  of  timbers  were  usually  made  considerably  heavier  than  would 
be  required  by  the  pressures.  On  the  upper  set  was  laid  the  deck,  and  additional  width 
had  to  be  provided  for  breaking  joints  in  the  planking.  On  the  second  set  was  usually 
supported  all  of  the  underground  structures,  such  as  water  and  gas  pipes,  electric  conduits, 
etc.  Both  of  these  sets  were  made  solid ;  the  braces  were  either  in  one  piece  or  spliced  to 
make  them  act  as  one  piece.  All  of  the  other  sets  below  the  level  of  the  second  were  pro- 
vided with  what  are  locally  known  as  "false  rangers."  By  means  of  this  system  it  is  possible 
to  lift  out  a  short  length  of  brace  to  allow  the  construction  to  proceed  without  cutting 
out  a  brace  reaching  from  side  to  side  of  the  ditch,  thereby  preserving  the  integrity  of 
the  timbering  as  a  whole.  Each  of  the  cross  braces  was  secured  in  place  with 
wooden  wedges,  driven  from  both  sides  simultaneously,  following  a  timber  which  had 
been  previously  screw-jacked  into  place,  to  maintain  the  distance  between  the  rangers. 


Market  Street   Elevated   Railway 
Looking  ^Vest  towatd  Sixty-sixth   Street   Station 


Four  Steps  in  Track-laying,   East   Market   Street   Subway 


GEORGE  H.  EARLE.  JR. 

Director  Philadelphia  Rapid  Transit   Company 


The  cross  braces  were  generally  placed  8  feet  apart  along  the  longitudinal  axis  of  the 
Subway,  and  about  5  feet  apart  vertically.  The  distances  between  the  timbers  in  both 
planes  were  frequently  changed  to  clear  obstructions  as  they  were  encountered. 

Where  both  walls  of  the  Subway  were  built  before  the  core  was  removed  from  between 
them,  the  distance  between  the  braces  on  the  longitudinal  axis  of  the  Subway  was  about 
12  feet.  This  distance  could  possibly  have  been  increased  to  some  extent  had  not  the 
refill  been  made  back  of  the  Subway  walls  on  both  sides ;  the  material  was  frequently 
piled  up  a  considerable  distance  above  the  top  of  the  walls  and  sloped  back,  forming  prac- 
tically two  surcharged  walls. 

Of  interest  among  the  special  cases  mentioned,  is  that  of  supporting  the  banks  at 
Front  Street,  above  Market  Street,  where  the  Subway  leaves  the  bed  of  Market  Street. 
The  excavation  was  made  in  the  usual  way,  excepting  that  it  was  all  open  cut,  and  the  banks 
were  sustained  by  raker  braces,  placed  as  the  excavation  proceeded.  The  maximum 
cut  was  about  30  feet;  the  banks  were  heavy,  and  60  feet  from  the  front  face  of 
the  cut  were  some  quite  heavy  buildings.  In  the  bed  of  Front  Street  was  a  sewer,  with 
gas  and  water  distribution  pipes  and  electrical  conduits,  among  which  were  the  long  dis- 
tance telephone  and  others  of  equal  importance,  all  of  which  were  kept  in  undisturbed 
service  throughout  the  entire  work.  The  removal  of  the  raker  braces,  as  the  work  was 
built  up  under  them,  was  quite  a  delicate  matter,  and  had  to  be  preceded  in  every  case  by 
the  placing  of  others,  so  as  not  to  disturb  the  banks. 

At  the  street  intersections,  for  expeditious  working,  the  length  of  the  trench  was 
reduced,  and  generally  the  depth  excavated  in  open  cut  was  about  8  feet,  after  which  it 
was  decked  over,  and  the  balance  of  the  excavated  material  removed  under  the  deck. 

Considerable  advantage  was  gained  by  working  the  derricks  in  pairs,  a  derrick  taking 
out  the  top  lift  being  followed  closely  by  another  taking  out  all  the  material  below  that  level. 

All  of  the  excavation  along  the  sides  was  made  in  the  above  manner;  but  when  the 
core  was  to  be  removed,  a  different  method  had  to  be  adopted.  The  core  was  attacked 
from  one  side  of  the  street  by  driving  a  heading  or  drift  into  the  bank,  and  then  the 
heading  was  enlarged  by  working  both  ways  from  it.  The  headings  were  usually  about 
8  feet  in  depth,  which  depth  was  maintained  when  the  cut  was  lengthened.  The 
excavation  was  then  continued  in  a  vertical  plane  in  lifts  of  from  4  to  6  feet,  until  sub-grade 
was  reached. 

Before  the  side  trenches  were  excavated,  the  granite  block  paving  was  removed. 
The  street  was  opened  alongside  of  and  between  the  rails,  and  12  inch  by  14  inch  string- 
ers of  long-leaf  yellow  pine  were  inserted  under  each  rail  below  the  ties.  The  spaces 
between  the  ties  were  then  filled  solid  with  planking;  a  layer  of  2  inch  plank  was  spiked  on 
the  ties  parallel  with  the  rails,  and  the  granite  block  paving  was  replaced  on  a  bed  of  sand. 


After  the  side  walls  were  built,  before  removing  whatever  timbers  might  have  been 
in  the  way  of  the  roof,  it  was  necessary  to  place  the  needles  to  carry  the  two  surface  tracks 
across  the  excavation.  Posts  8  inches  by  10  inches  were  erected  on  the  side  walls  at  the 
level  of  the  base  of  the  arch,  and  two  12  inch  by  12  inch  16  foot  timbers  were  thrown 
across  the  excavation,  resting  on  these  posts  and  on  a  corbel  set  over  a  small  post  on  each 
of  the  centre  columns,  at  an  elevation  above  the  top  of  the  roof.  These  needle  beams 
were  lashed  together  with  3  inch  by  10  inch  planks  to  prevent  lateral  movement,  the 
weight  of  the  street  being  depended  on  to  hold  them  down. 

Several  variations  of  this  method  were  used  where  necessary,  as  at  the  crossovers. 
Here  the  centre  columns  were  omitted  in  the  Subway  structure,  and  the  roof  was  put  in  in 
one  span  from  wall  to  wall.  At  the  crossovers  west  of  Second  Street  Station,  the  finished 
roof  was  only  a  little  below  the  street  surface.  The  problem  was  to  carry  the  street  surface 
with  its  two  lines  of  tracks  across  the  Subway  without  a  permanent  intermediate  support. 
The  head-room  below  the  street  surface  was  insufficient  for  a  truss  to  span  the  entire  width 
of  the  structure,  and  the  surface  conditions  did  not  allow  of  a  bridge  truss  between  the 
tracks,  by  which  to  suspend  them  from  above. 

An  intermediate  support  was  made  of  a  small  latticed  steel  column,  supported  about 
i  inch  above  the  finished  underside  of  the  roof  slab  on  a  12  inch  by  12  inch  post  resting 
on  the  Subway  floor  below.  The  needles  were  supported  in  the  usual  manner  on  this 
column,  and  on  the  posts  erected  on  the  side  walls.  The  latticing  on  the  column  was 
arranged  so  as  not  to  interfere  with  the  reinforcing  rods  in  either  direction,  and  the  column 
was  concreted  in  the  roof.  In  due  time  the  wooden  posts,  which  were  set  up  on  wedges, 
were  lowered  and  then  removed.  The  underside  of  the  column,  which  had  been  raised 
above  the  forms,  and  which  had  been  previously  wrapped  with  close  woven  wire  mesh, 
was  plastered  flush  with  the  finished  surface  of  the  roof.  This  method  worked  so  well, 
was  so  simple  and  comparatively  inexpensive,  that  it  was  used  on  two  other  of  the  cross- 
overs, although  there  was  sufficient  room  above  the  roof  for  a  truss  to  carry  the  street. 

At  another  place,  between  Letitia  Street  and  Front  Street,  where  the  Subway  begins 
to  rise  to  the  surface,  there  was  not  sufficient  room  under  the  decking  to  conveniently  place 
the  concrete,  the  reinforcement,  or  the  water-proofing.  The  rails  were  jacked  up  from 
the  12  inch  by  14  inch  stringers  high  enough  to  place  12  inch  by  12  inch  needles  between 
the  stringers  and  the  rails.  These  needle  beams  were  supported  on  the  centre  and  side 
walls  of  the  Subway  on  small  lattice  columns,  as  before,  the  stringers  were  removed,  and 
the  columns  were  concreted  in  the  roof.  The  needles  were  placed  5  feet  apart  along  the 
axis  of  the  Subway,  and  the  rails  themselves  carried  the  traffic  over  this  span. 

With  several  minor  exceptions,  all  of  the  sheeting  or  sheet  piling  used  on  this  work 
was  of  rough  2  inch  by  8  inch  planks,  12,  14,  and  16  feet  in  length,  and  was  hand  driven. 


At  street  intersections,  and  at  the  ends  of  side  ditches,  the  bulkhead  usually  consisted 
of  short  lengths  of  sheeting,  set  in  place  as  the  excavation  proceeded.  This  sheeting, 
which  was  in  from  4  to  6  feet  lengths,  could  not  be  driven,  owing  to  the  underground 
structures. 

The  decking  consisted  of  two  courses  of  planking — the  upper  course  of  3  inch  by  9 
inch,  laid  close;  the  lower  course  of  4  inch  by  10  inch,  laid  with  8  inch  spaces  between  the 
planks.  The  lower  course  was  laid  parallel  to  the  axis  of  the  Subway,  and  spiked  to  the 
upper  cross  braces  in  the  ditch  with  80  penny  wire  spikes.  The  upper  course  was  laid  at 
right  angles  to  the  lower  course.  The  decking  supported  all  the  wagon  traffic  on  the  street 
without  any  difficulty,  and  sustained  unusually  heavy  concentrated  loads  at  times. 

The  methods  at  the  stations  varied  considerably  from  those  in  the  Subway  proper,  as 
the  stations  occupied  the  entire  width  of  the  street,  and  the  houses  had  to  be  underpinned. 

At  Second  Street  the  station  wall  is  about  9  feet  from  the  house  line,  and  the  deepest 
excavation  is  at  least  20  feet  below  the  bottom  of  the  average  foundation.  The  buildings 
were  all  four  and  five  story  stores  and  light  manufacturing  buildings  and  warehouses,  and 
were  quite  old,  although  none  of  them  was  extraordinarily  heavy. 

At  Fifth  Street  the  excavation  occupies  the  entire  width  between  the  houses,  and  all 
of  the  houses  were  underpinned.  The  foundations  were  carried  down  to  the  level  of  the 
bottom  of  the  new  sewers,  which  abutted  immediately  against  the  houses.  All  of  the  build- 
ings were  old  and  some  of  them  quite  heavy. 

At  Eighth  Street  the  excavation  occupies  the  entire  width  between  the  houses, 
and  nearly  all  the  houses  were  underpinned.  All  the  buildings,  except  those  adjacent 
to  the  southeast  quarter  of  the  station,  were  very  heavy,  and  were  occupied  by  department 
stores. 

At  Eleventh  Street  the  excavation  occupies  the  entire  width  of  the  street,  and  all  of  the 
adjacent  buildings  were  underpinned.  Some  of  the  buildings,  as  at  the  southeast  corner 
of  Eleventh  Street,  were  exceedingly  heavy  and  the  foundations  were  anything  but  ideal, 
because  the  original  was  quite  old,  and  had  been  added  to  from  time  to  time. 

The  underpinning  at  the  southwest  corner  of  Eleventh  Street  was  light,  but  at  1107 
and  1109  Market  Street  was  quite  difficult.  The  latter  buildings  were  exceedingly  heavy, 
and  the  subsoil  was  a  tenacious  blue  clay. 

At  Thirteenth  Street  the  buildings  adjacent  to  the  northeast,  northwest,  and  south- 
east quarters  of  the  station  were  underpinned,  but  presented  no  unusual  difficulties.  The 
building  at  the  southwest  corner  was  founded  at  a  lower  level  than  any  of  the  adjacent 
Subway  work. 

At  quite  a  number  of  places,  particularly  where  the  Subway  passes  close  to  house  foun- 
dations, underpinning  was  necessary  to  prevent  settlement  or  undermining  of  the  buildings. 


Three  distinct  methods  of  underpinning  were  adopted,  based  on  the  character  of  the 
foundations.  In  every  case  the  excavation  was  completed  to  the  level  of  the  bottom  of 
the  foundations  before  beginning  the  underpinning. 

ist.  Continuous  underpinning  without  the  aid  of  needles. 

2d.  Continuous  underpinning  using  needle  beams. 

3d.  Isolated  pier  underpinning  using  needle  beams. 

The  first  method  was  used  where  continuous  foundations  existed,  and  where  the 
depth  of  the  underpinning  was  not  too  great.  The  soil  was  removed  from  under  the  foun- 
dation walls  in  alternate  sections,  6  to  8  feet  in  length,  the  sides  of  the  excavation  being 
sheeted  progressively.  Masonry,  usually  concrete,  was  built  up  to  a  point  from  24  to  30  inches 
below  the  bottom  of  the  original  footings  (or,  where  it  was  necessary  to  remove  the 
original  footing  as  being  unsound,  up  to  the  level  of  the  sound  masonry).  The  space 
between  the  original  work  and  the  new  work  was  filled  with  brick  masonry  in  cement  mortar, 
and  the  work  was  finally  wedged  up  hard  with  steel  wedges  against  the  old  masonry.  Each 
section  was  completed  before  a  new  one  was  started,  and  the  arch  action  of  the  masonry 
was  depended  on  to  carry  the  building  temporarily  while  the  section  of  underpinning  was 
being  completed. 

This  method  was  used  at  the  northwest  corner  of  Eighth  and  Market  Streets  with 
complete  success,  and  without  causing  the  slightest  apparent  settlement. 

Considerable  continuous  underpinning  with  needle  beams  was  done  around  Front 
Street.  The  underpinning  was  from  25  to  30  feet  deep.  The  excavation  was  taken  down 
to  the  bottom  of  the  footing.  Crib  holes  were  sunk  inside  and  outside  of  the  buildings. 
These  holes  were  short  sheeted,  as  the  excavation  was  carried  down,  in  sections  of  about  4 
feet.  The  crib  holes  outside  the  building  were  usually  carried  down  to  the  depth  of  the  pro- 
posed foundation.  Cribs  of  1 2  inch  by  1 2  inch  timbers  were  built  up  to  a  level  above  the  bot- 
tom of  the  footings,  usually  sufficiently  high  to  allow  working  space  above  the  cellar  floors  for 
cutting  out  holes  for  the  needles  in  the  foundation  walls.  Unless  the  buildings  were  heavy, 
the  inside  cribs  were  not  carried  down  more  than  about  4  feet  below  the  cellar  floors.  These 
cribs  were  capped  with  heavy  timbers,  usually  12  inch  by  12  inch  and  12  inch  by  14  inch, 
between  which  were  placed  the  jack  screws.  The  cribs  inside  and  outside  the  buildings 
were  usually  about  20  feet,  centre  to  centre.  The  requisite  number  of  20  inch  steel  "I" 
beams  to  carry  the  load,  each  about  24  feet  long,  were  placed  on  the  crib  caps  through 
holes  in  the  foundation  walls,  and  wedged  up  with  steel  wedges  and  with  shingles,  so  as 
to  take  the  weight  of  the  buildings.  After  this  the  earth  was  excavated  below  the  founda- 
tions, between  the  inside  and  outside  crib  holes.  Short  sheeting  as  above  described  was 
placed  as  the  excavation  proceeded.  The  cribs  were  braced  against  each  other,  and  also 
against  the  banks  as  the  excavation  was  removed. 


CLARENCE  WOLF 

Director  PLiladelpliia  Rapid  Transit  Company 


Signal   Apparatus.  West  Market  Street 


Subway-Elevated  Car 
Three-Car  Train  at  Thirty-second  Street  Station 


In  this  kind  of  underpinning  it  is  usual  to  place  on  top  of  the  needle  beams  smaller 
"I"  beams  immediately  under  the  walls,  to  carry  the  walls  between  the  needles.  These 
were  discovered  to  be  an  unnecessary  refinement,  and  were  omitted  in  the  greater  part  of 
the  work.  Their  omission  made  it  far  easier  for  the  brickmason  to  make  the  closure 
between  the  concrete  in  the  new  foundations  and  the  old  foundation  walls,  which  were 
usually  of  rubble  masonry. 

Isolated  underpinning  with  needle  beams  was  used  to  a  considerable  extent.  The 
cribs  inside  and  outside  the  buildings  were  employed  as  usual.  "I"  beams,  spanning 
from  crib  to  crib,  were  usually  made  to  carry  a  saddle,  from  which  were  suspended  sec- 
ondary "I"  beams,  which  carried  the  pier  footing.  After  the  weight  was  taken  by  the  jack 
screws,  the  excavation  was  made  below  the  pier  bottom  for  the  underpinning.  Where  the 
piers  were  sufficiently  large,  they  were  sometimes  pierced  the  same  as  solid  walls,  for  the 
passage  of  the  "I"  beams  resting  on  jack  timbers  on  the  cribs,  and  the  work  conducted 
as  with  continuous  underpinning. 

A  good  example  of  this  character  of  work,  where  the  pier  was  suspended,  was  at  the 
southwest  quarter  of  Eighth  Street  Station,  where  an  iron  front,  nine  stories  in  height, 
is  carried  on  one  column  and  the  party  walls  of  the  adjoining  buildings.  Another 
example  is  the  property  1109  Market  Street,  where  two  piers  were  underpinned  by 
piercing  the  piers  with  needle  beams,  the  load  on  each  pier  being  in  the  neighborhood  of 
200,000  pounds. 

The  Market  Street  front  of  the  properties  stretching  east  from  the  northeast  corner 
of  Eighth  Street,  consisted  of  a  number  of  piers  with  curtain  walls  between  them.  As 
these  walls  carry  no  load  whatever,  no  special  precaution  was  taken  to  protect  them.  The 
piers,  however,  were  underpinned  by  a  variation  from  the  usual  method  with  isolated  piers. 
As  it  was  found  impracticable  to  build  cribs  inside  the  buildings,  each  individual  pier  was 
supported  by  means  of  what  the  underpinners  call  "spur  braces"  or  spurs.  These  con- 
sist of  a  couple  of  raker  braces  placed  against  the  pier  to  be  underpinned,  supported  at  the 
base  on  cribbing,  and  carrying  at  the  top  a  head  piece  or  cap,  from  which  a  sill  is  suspended 
by  means  of  rods.  On  this  sill  piece,  and  in  a  seat  provided  between  the  raker  braces,  are 
supported  several  "I"  beams,  cantilevering  under  the  pier  foundation,  which  is  undermined 
one  section  at  a  time  and  underpinned. 

On  Market  Street  west  of  Front  Street,  the  Subway  begins  to  curve  into  the  private 
right-of-way  of  the  Philadelphia  Rapid  Transit  Company.  The  Subway  passes  directly 
under  the  house  at  the  northwest  corner  of  Front  and  Market  Streets.  The  north  wall 
enters  on  the  house  line  of  Market  Street  at  the  party  line  between  the  corner  property  and 
the  house  west  of  Front  Street,  and  emerges  on  the  west  house  line  of  Front  Street  on  the 
party  line  between  the  corner  property  and  the  first  house  north  of  the  corner  property. 


The  whole  west  and  south  fronts  of  the  building  are,  therefore,  supported  on  the  Subway 
roof.  These  two  walls  were  needled  in  the  usual  way  for  continuous  underpinning,  the 
cribs  and  needles  being  so  placed  as  to  allow  the  building  of  the  north  and  centre  walls  of 
the  Subway  in  sections.  When  these  sections  were  built,  the  weight  of  the  needles  was  trans- 
ferred to  a  series  of  "drums,"  as  the  underpinners  call  them — vertical  posts  set  up  on 
jack  screws;  the  cribs  were  removed,  and  the  several  sections  of  Subway  walls  connected. 
Permanent  steel  girders  were  built  in  the  Subway  roof,  for  the  purpose  of  carrying  the 
future  foundations  of  a  heavy  building  to  be  erected  at  this  point.  The  drums  were  ar- 
ranged so  as  to  allow  the  placing  of  these  girders  as  far  as  possible  without  changing  the 
temporary  work.  When  these  girders  were  in  place  the  weight  of  the  building  was  trans- 
ferred to  them,  and  all  the  temporary  work  was  removed.  The  concrete  roof  of  the  Subway 
was  then  built  between  these  girders,  and  the  masonry  underpinning  of  the  buildings  was 
completed  on  top  of  the  Subway  roof.  Sixty-five  buildings  were  underpinned  on  this  work 
with  frontages  varying  from  20  feet  to  150  feet. 

All  of  the  concrete  was  mixed  by  machinery,  in  approximately  one-half-yard  batches. 
The  revolving  drum  type  of  machine  with  loose  paddles  was  used,  and  gave  entire 
satisfaction.  Since  the  machine  could  not  be  loaded  with  a  derrick,  because  of  insufficient 
room,  some  compact  mechanical  means  had  to  be  provided — a  device  moreover  which 
could  readily  be  dismantled  and  moved  as  the  concrete  mixer  was  moved  along  the  line  of 
the  work.  Two  distinct  types  of  elevating  devices  were  developed,  and,  it  is  believed,  first 
used  on  this  work. 

Each  of  the  mixers  was  mounted  on  a  carriage  to  facilitate  handling  from  place  to 
place,  and  each  mixer  was  driven  independently  by  a  10  horse-power  electric  motor  mounted 
on  the  carriage. 

Water  was  supplied  the  mixers  from  temporary  connections  made  with  the  water  dis- 
tribution pipes  on  the  street.  The  concrete  was  made  of  that  consistency  which  required 
an  amount  of  water  equal  to  about  16  per  cent,  of  the  quantity  of  mortar. 

Under  the  discharge  end  of  the  machine  was  placed  a  sheet  iron  lined  wooden  trough, 
with  an  iron  lifting  gate,  the  box  of  a  capacity  of  a  whole  batch  of  mixed  concrete. 

The  concrete  was  deposited  in  the  work  through  chutes  in  the  deck,  discharging  either 
into  the  forms  or  on  to  platforms  provided  for  the  purpose. 

During  the  winter  months  each  mixer  outfit  was  augmented  by  a  vertical  steam  boiler 
of  10  to  12  commercial  horse-power,  for  the  purpose  of  heating  the  water,  sand  and  stone. 
A  2  inch  pipe  with  cross  arms  of  i  inch  pipe  at  right  angles  to  it,  pierced  with  J  inch  holes, 
and  connected  with  the  boilers  with  a  short  length  of  steam  hose,  served  to  supply  sufficient 
heat  to  prevent  freezing  by  blowing  live  steam  into  the  sand  and  stone.  A  permanent 
i  inch  connection  was  taken  off  the  boilers  and  turned  down  into  the  water  barrel,  which  was 


W.  H.  CARPENTER 

Director  Philadelphia  Rapid  Transit  Company 


mounted  on  a  platform  back  of  the  concrete  machine,  and  served  to  heat  the  water  used 
in  mixing  the  concrete.  No  precautions  were  taken  to  prevent  freezing  of  the  concrete, 
other  than  covering  it  with  salt  hay  after  it  had  been  placed,  even  when  the  temperature 
at  the  street  surface  was  as  low  as  15°  Fahrenheit.  No  bad  effects  of  the  freezing  of  the 
concrete  are  noticeable  in  the  work  constructed  at  low  temperatures. 

In  addition  to  the  seven  £-yard  mixers,  there  was  provided  a  small  portable  Smith 
machine,  driven  by  a  gasoline  engine,  and  mounted  on  a  wagon  body.  This  machine 
was  an  improvement  over  the  larger  machines  of  the  same  make,  in  that  the  drum  was 
dumped  by  simply  depressing  a  lever,  instead  of  by  operating  a  screw,  which  required 
considerably  more  time.  This  machine  was  a  valuable  adjunct,  being  used  wherever  the 
quantity  of  concrete  to  be  placed  would  not  warrant  the  use  of  the  larger  machine.  It 
was  easily  demonstrated  that  this  was  really  the  proper  type  of  concrete  mixer  for  work 
that  requires  either  constant  and  expensive  shifting  of  mixing  plant,  or  wheeling  of  concrete 
quite  long  distances,  which  was  not  advisable  for  several  reasons  outside  of  its  cost.  The 
machine  was  easily  drawn  by  a  pair  of  horses,  and  was  ready  for  instant  operation.  It 
could  be  placed  on  the  surface  in  such  a  position  with  relation  to  the  work  as  either 
to  pour  the  concrete  directly  into  the  forms  below  or  greatly  to  reduce  the  length  of 
wheel. 

Three  mixtures  of  concrete  were  used  in  the  work:  i  :  2  : 4;  1:2^  :  5;  and  1:3:6. 
The  1:2:4  concrete  was  used  in  all  places  where  work  was  below  the  level  of  the  perma- 
nent ground  water,  and  in  particularly  thin  sections.  The  i  :  2^  15  mixture  was  used 
in  all  work  pertaining  to  the  Subway  proper;  and  the  i  :  3  : 6  mixture  was  used  in  the 
sewers  and  sewerage  appurtenances. 

The  material  used  in  the  aggregate  was  pebbles  varying  from  J  inch  to  i  inch  diam- 
eter, dredged  from  the  bed  of  the  Delaware  River  near  Bordentown,  N.  J.,  and  completely 
washed  in  the  process  of  screening.  They  were  beautifully  graded,  and  formed  a  far 
denser  concrete  than  is  ordinarily  to  be  had  with  broken  stone.  This  point  is  mentioned 
because  this  is  probably  the  first  large  piece  of  work  in  this  vicinity  in  which  gravel  was 
used  for  this  purpose.  The  sand  was  principally  a  coarse  gray  sand,  well  graded  and 
washed,  dredged  in  the  Delaware  River  opposite  Gloucester,  N.  J.,  and  is  locally  known 
as  "Gloucester  Beach"  sand.  Several  brands  of  cement  were  used,  but  by  far  the  major 
portion  of  the  work  was  built  with  "Vulcanite"  cement. 

The  capacity  of  the  concrete  plant  provided  was  far  in  excess  of  the  needs  for  the 
actual  mixing  ;  but  experience  showed  that  in  placing  the  concrete  the  truest  economy 
restricted  the  length  of  wheel  to  not  over  150  feet.  Furthermore,  as  the  timber  had  to  be 
changed  as  the  work  was  built  up,  it  was  necessary,  therefore,  to  suspend  work  tempora- 
rily at  a  given  place  from  time  to  time.  For  this  reason,  if  portable  machines  of  sufficient 


capacity  had  been  provided,  which  could  readily  have  been  moved  from  place  to  place, 
fewer  of  them  would  have  been  needed. 

Each  machine  has  mixed  upwards  of  12,000  cubic  yards  of  concrete.  The  capacity 
of  the  individual  mixing  machines  used  on  this  work  was  determined  by  the  rapidity  with 
which  the  concrete  could  be  placed ;  about  75  cubic  yards  in  10  hours  is  the  maximum 
quantity  handled  by  a  mixer  on  this  work. 

The  reinforcing  rods  were  twisted  steel  of  the  Ransome  pattern,  supplied  by  the 
Carnegie  Steel  Company;  5,500,000  pounds  were  used.  As  many  of  these  rods  had  to 
be  bent  to  different  radii,  the  question  of  a  power  machine  for  that  purpose  arose  early  in 
the  work.  No  machine  was  available  for  bending  twisted  rods.  Ordinary  square  or 
round  bars  could  be  bent  on  a  tire  bender,  but  not  twisted  rods. 

A  machine  had  to  be  devised  for  the  purpose,  taking  into  account  the  fact  that  the 
bars  for  the  sewers  had  to  be  bent  to  varying  radii,  and  to  have  a  piece  of  tangent  at 
both  ends. 

The  general  principle  of  the  machine  as  built  is  that  of  the  tire  bender.  Corrugated 
case  hardened  rolls  were  used  in  place  of  plain  ones,  as  in  the  ordinary  tire  bender.  The 
adjustable  roll  was  actuated  by  a  hand  wheel  operating  a  rack  and  pinion,  which  deter- 
mined the  position  of  the  roll,  and  consequently  the  radius  of  curvature.  By  running  this 
roll  entirely  out  of  the  plane  of  the  rods  while  the  machine  was  in  motion,  the  rods  came 
out  without  being  bent,  thus  providing  the  proper  tangent  section  on  the  end  of  the  rods. 
The  machine  was  geared  to  operate  rapidly,  and  was  heavily  built.  It  was  driven  by  a 
link  belt  from  a  4^  horse-power  electric  motor.  It  bent  any  size  of  rod  up  to  i  inch  square 
to  any  radius  up  to  9  feet.  A  graduated  scale  set  on  the  rack  indicated  when  the  roll  was 
in  the  proper  position  to  bend  any  given  radius. 

The  designing  of  forms  for  use  on  this  work  required  that  several  distinct  points  be 
kept  in  view.  They  should  be: 

ist.  Of  as  simple  construction  as  possible,  to  allow  of  rapid  dismantling  or  collapsing. 

2d.  As  compact  units  as  possible,  to  allow  of  handling  under  the  street  surface  and 
in  cramped  positions  generally. 

3d.  As  strong  as  possible,  to  allow  of  constant  re-using. 

4th.  As  light  as  possible  for  facility  of  handling. 

North  Carolina  pine,  fairly  free  from  sap,  was  used  throughout,  excepting  in  some 
instances  where  panelling  was  required,  where  white  pine  was  used. 

Both  tongued  and  grooved  and  beveled  edged  stuff  were  used.  The  sheeting  or 
lagging  for  the  main  walls  and  slab  roof  was  2  inch  by  10  inch  plank,  generally  16 
feet  in  length,  tongued  and  grooved,  and  planed  on  both  sides.  The  necessity  of 
accurately  centring  the  tongue  and  groove  where  plank  are  planed  both  sides  is  obvious. 


MAYOR  JOHN  E.  REYBURN 

Director  Philadelphia  Rapid  Tranait  Company 


The  following  spacing  of  uprights  was  allowed  with  sheeting  or  lagging  of  different 
thicknesses : 

DISTANCE  BETWEEN  SUPPORTS  COMMERCIAL  SIZE  or  SHEETING  on  LAGGING 

48  inch  centres  2    inches 

36    "         "  ij      " 

30    "         "  i     inch 

18     "         "  |      " 

In  designing  the  forms  the  concrete  was  assumed  to  weigh  150  pounds  per  cubic  foot, 
and  the  allowable  unit  stress  in  the  timber  used  was  taken  at  1,000  pounds  per  square  inch. 
The  forms  used  for  encasing  the  centre  line  columns  in  concrete  were  made  of  ij  inch 
stuff,  properly  battened.  Three  sides  of  this  form  were  made  the  entire  length  of  the  col- 
umn and  hinged  together,  and  the  other  side  was  placed  as  the  form  was  filled  with  concrete. 
The  fourth  side  was  made  in  sections  about  3  feet  long,  each  section  being  held  in  position 
with  loose  battens,  which  were  supported  in  notched  pieces  set  on  and  protruding  beyond 
the  adjacent  sides.  Wooden  wedges  were  used  between  the  loose  battens  and  the  sectional 
front  boards  of  the  form  to  hold  them  in  position.  The  form  itself  was  held  in  position 
in  the  following  manner:  The  centre  line  columns  were  built  of  structural  shapes,  gen- 
erally four  angles,  and  several  tie  plates  were  arranged  so  that  the  web  was  transverse  to 
the  centre  line  of  the  Subway.  The  forms  were  set  around  the  steel  column  on  a  previously 
built  plinth  or  base  of  concrete,  and  were  held  at  a  distance  of  i  J  inches  from  the  steel  on 
all  sides  by  40  penny  nails  driven  through  the  form  on  the  line  of  the  web  of  the  column, 
to  hold  the  form  from  moving  in  the  direction  of  the  longitudinal  axis  of  the  Subway. 
Motion  in  the  other  direction  was  prevented  by  nails  driven  through  the  side  leaves  of  the 
form  and  just  touching  the  steel  angles.  No  other  bracing  of  any  kind  was  required. 
The  forms  were  filled  at  one  operation,  being  removed  after  30  hours.  The  column  caps 
were  made  of  light  lagging,  each  side  being  battened  together  and  the  four  sides  bolted, 
so  as  to  admit  of  easy  removal  and  re-erection. 

Crude  oil  was  used  for  greasing  the  forms  to  prevent  adhesion  of  the  concrete,  and 
was  found  to  be  satisfactory. 

The  following  rules  were  observed  in  removing  roof  forms,  subject,  of  course,  to  varia- 
tion due  to  the  conditions  of  temperature  and  moisture,  etc.: 
Standard  roof:    Leave  forms  in  at  least  3  weeks; 

Load  (street  car  tracks)  can  be  put  on  in  5  weeks. 
Crossover  roof:    Leave  forms  in  at  least  5  weeks; 
Load  (street  car  tracks)  can  be  put  on  in  7  weeks. 

Centre  posts  in  crossover  can  be  removed  at  any  time  after  centres  are  removed. 
Station  roof:    Leave  forms  in  at  least  i  week; 
Load  (street  car  tracks)  can  be  put  on  in  2  weeks. 


If  it  became  necessary  to  load  the  structure  before  the  expiration  of  the  required  time, 
the  forms  were  allowed  to  remain  in  place  until  that  time  had  elapsed. 

After  placing  the  concrete  roof,  and  while  the  needles  were  still  in  position,  the  water- 
proof layer  was  applied.  The  water-proofing  consists  of  a  sheet  of  asphaltic  mastic,  and 
was  placed  in  two  layers,  each  \  inch  in  thickness.  The  8  inch  by  10  inch  posts  which  sup- 
port the  needles  on  the  side  walls  and  over  the  centre  columns,  were  boxed  around  so  that 
the  lower  layer  of  water-proofing  should  be  kept  away  from  the  posts  at  least  2  inches  on 
each  side.  The  3  inch  layer  of  concrete  intended  as  a  protective  coating  for  the  water- 
proofing against  physical  injury,  was  then  placed,  and  before  the  needles  were  removed 
the  longitudinal  stringers  under  the  rails  were  posted  on  the  main  roof  with  8  inch  by  10 
inch  posts,  set  on  4  inch  foot  blocks  about  5  feet  centre  to  centre. 

The  needles  were  then  withdrawn  and  the  posts  supporting  the  needles  removed. 
The  asphalt  was  patched  out  so  as  to  form  a  continuous  sheet,  and  the  upper  layer  of  con- 
crete was  completed. 

At  the  stations,  where  the  street  was  carried  on  the  structural  steel  as  soon  as  it  was 
placed,  the  procedure  was  quite  similar.  The  posts  were  boxed  around  as  in  the  former 
case,  the  asphalt  sheet  laid  on  top  of  the  concrete  jack  arches,  and  the  3  inch  protective 
layer  placed.  The  permanent  posts  were  then  placed,  resting  on  the  finished  roof,  and 
the  temporary  posts  and  boxing  removed  from  on  the  steel  girders.  The  lower  layer  of 
concrete  was  carried  up  over  the  steel  to  the  level  of  the  bottom  of  the  water-proofing, 
after  which  the  asphalt  layer  was  patched  out  as  usual,  and  the  protective  layer  was  com- 
pleted. 

After  the  boxing  was  removed  so  as  to  allow  the  placing  of  the  lower  layer  of  water- 
proofing, it  was  again  restored  prior  to  placing  the  upper  layer  at  a  distance  of  about  4  inches 
each  side  beyond  the  lower  layer,  so  that  the  top  layer  will  lap  over  the  lower  layer  to  form 
a  continuous  sheet. 

At  Second  Street  Station  the  sewers  and  all  of  the  station  work  were  completed  and 
the  structural  steel  erected  on  the  sides  before  the  removal  of  the  core  was  begun.  The 
top  lift  (about  8  feet  in  depth)  was  then  taken  out  of  the  core,  and  the  transverse  steel 
girders  were  placed  in  position  from  each  side.  These  girders  eventually  rested  on  the 
centre  columns  in  the  stations.  They  were  posted  down  as  each  successive  lift  of  the  core 
was  removed,  until  sub-grade  was  reached.  The  concrete  centre  footing  was  then  built 
and  the  columns  erected  on  them,  and  the  cross  girders  riveted  in  place. 

After  the  cross  girders  were  placed  in  the  top  lift  the  entire  street  load  was  carried 
on  them  during  the  work  of  excavation.  The  girders  were  spaced  6  feet  centre  to  centre, 
and  were  temporarily  bolted  to  the  longitudinal  girders  at  the  sides,  the  other  ends  being 
supported  on  12  inch  by  12  inch  timbers,  18  feet  long,  placed  in  two  lines  parallel  with 


the  axis  of  the  Subway,  and  about  5  feet  from  centre  to  centre.  The  needles,  as  they  were 
known  in  the  work,  were  posted  down  to  the  bottom. 

No  timbering  other  than  the  needles  above  mentioned  and  the  posts  supporting  them, 
was  required  in  the  core.  The  posts  were  12  inch  by  12  inch  timbers,  16  feet  long,  at  sub- 
grade  of  the  excavation.  They  were  tied  together  transversely  and  along  the  axis  of  the 
Subway  with  3  inch  by  8  inch  planks,  to  prevent  distortion  or  movement. 

Practically  the  same  method  of  erection  was  followed  at  Fifth,  Eighth,  and  Eleventh 
Street  Stations.  At  Thirteenth  Street  Station  the  entire  cut  was  timbered,  and  the  steel 
placed  afterwards. 

All  of  the  structural  steel  at  the  stations  was  placed  with  one  or  other  of  the  derricks 
described  above.  A  portable  "A"  frame  was  used  for  lowering  the  centre  Subway  col- 
umns, and  a  gin  pole  and  portable  winch  were  used  in  placing  the  steel  work  at  the  portal, 
which  was  not  accessible  to  a  derrick. 

The  erection  of  the  structural  steel  often  presented  great  difficulties.  Since  the  ma- 
terial could  not  always  be  lowered  into  the  places  where  it  was  required  on  account  of  the 
underground  structures,  it  had  to  be  put  in  wherever  there  was  an  opening  in  the  structures, 
and  then  skidded  along  underneath  to  its  proper  place. 

The  steel  work  was  riveted  with  pneumatic  hammers  supplied  with  air  by  portable 
electric  driven  air  compressors. 

The  building  of  the  sewers  generally  required  four  distinct  operations:  ist,  The  lay- 
ing of  the  concrete  invert;  2d,  the  placing  of  the  brick  lining  in  the  invert;  3d,  the  building 
of  the  two  side  walls  to  the  spring  line  of  the  arch;  4th,  the  placing  of  the  arch. 

Wooden  templets  were  used  for  forming  up  the  invert,  and  wooden  side  forms  were 
generally  used  below  the  springing  line  of  the  arch;  collapsible  steel  forms  were  used  for 
the  arch  in  every  case.  The  outside  forms  for  the  arch  were  generally  built  up  as  the  con- 
crete was  placed,  of  i  inch  by  6  inch  rough  lagging,  on  ribs  cut  from  i  inch  boards  12  inches 
wide,  and  spaced  30  inches  centre  to  centre. 

Two  sets  of  transverse  reinforcing  bars  were  used  in  the  arch  and  side  walls;  one  set 
was  usually  placed  2  inches  above  the  intrados  of  the  arch,  and  the  other  2  inches  below 
the  extrados.  These  rods  were  set  after  the  forms  for  the  side  walls  were  built  to  the  spring 
line.  They  were  supported  on  the  centre  line  of  the  arch  at  the  proper  height  on  2  inch  by 
3  inch  scantlings,  suspended  from  the  trench  timbers  in  notches  cut  so  as  to  preserve  the 
proper  distance  centre  to  centre,  and  by  i  inch  by  3  inch  planks  fastened  to  the  top  of  the 
side  forms  at  the  spring  line  of  the  arch. 

The  longitudinal  rods  were  wired  to  the  transverse  rods  in  the  proper  position. 

The  collapsible  steel  arch  forms  were  set  on  sills  parallel  to  the  axis  of  the  sewer, 
framed  together  so  as  to  form  a  carriage  which  was  provided  with  cast  iron  wheels  or 


casters.    The  entire  section  of  the  arch  after  lowering  the  crown  could  be  moved  on  wooden 
rails  supported  above  the  invert,  which  were  provided  for  the  purpose. 

The  equivalent  of  50  feet  of  completed  sewer,  7  feet  by  7  feet  in  dimension,  is  the 
maximum  length  built  in  this  manner  in  one  day  of  10  hours. 

It  was  early  recognized  that  the  one  thing  that  stood  in  the  way  of  rapid  progress 
in  the  construction  of  the  Subway,  was  the  maintenance  of  the  old  Market  Street  sewer 
until  such  time  as  the  new  sewers  could  be  put  into  operation.  As  long  as  the  old  sewer 
in  the  centre  of  the  street  remained  in  service,  it  was  impossible  to  excavate  for  the  Subway 
proper.  The  only  work  that  could  be  done  on  the  Subway,  throughout  its  whole  length, 
was  the  building  of  the  side  walls. 

Several  schemes  for  getting  rid  of  the  obstruction  were  considered.  It  was  proposed  to 
begin  operations  on  the  new  sewers  on  both  sides  of  the  street  simultaneously,  block  by 
block;  to  connect  up  the  house  services  and  inlets  as  the  sewers  were  completed;  and  also 
to  make  temporary  connection  with  the  old  sewer  to  the  westward  where  necessary.  It 
was  also  proposed  to  establish  small  pumping  plants  along  the  line  to  pump  the  sewage 
and  storm  water  from  the  several  disconnected  sections  of  the  new  sewers  into  the  higher 
level  sewers  on  the  intersecting  streets  at  Fourth,  Seventh,  Ninth,  Twelfth  Streets,  etc. 

By  dividing  the  new  sewers  into  comparatively  small  sections  the  quantity  to  be 
pumped  at  each  point  could  be  minimized. 

Work  on  the  Subway  proper  could  then  have  been  commenced  at  several  points  at 
the  same  time  without  waiting  for  the  completion  of  any  considerable  length  of  new  sewer 
or  even  before  the  outlet  of  the  new  sewers  was  completed. 

This  scheme  was  considered  in  all  its  details,  and  the  necessary  computations  were 
made.  It  was  found  that  if  an  amount  of  storm  water  due  to  a  rainfall  on  the  drainage 
area  at  the  rate  of  3  inches  per  hour  for  a  period  of  twenty  minutes  was  deemed  sufficient, 
the  tributary  sewers  were  all  sufficiently  large  to  accommodate  the  increased  flow.  Under 
ordinary  circumstances  this  would  have  presented  a  splendid  solution  of  the  problem,  and 
would  no  doubt  have  hastened  the  completion  of  the  whole  work.  But  the  uncertainty 
of  being  able  to  put  the  several  pumping  plants  into  instant  operation  during  a  storm  was 
allowed  to  outweigh  the  good  points  of  the  plan,  in  view  of  the  incalculable  damage  that 
might  have  ensued. 

The  only  other  feasible  method  was  the  construction  of  the  Subway,  following  the 
building  of  the  new  sewers  from  the  outlet  continuously,  and  this  method  was,  therefore, 
adopted. 

As  can  well  be  imagined,  the  underground  structures  seriously  interfered  with  the  work. 
In  some  places,  particularly  at  the  street  intersections  where  two  distinct  sets  of  structures 
were  encountered,  they  were  often  in  such  a  number,  and  were  so  close  together,  and  of 


AUGUST  B.  LOEB 

Director  Philadelphia  Rapid  Transit  Company 


Construction   of  Concrete  Floor,   Market   Street   Elevated   Railway 
Sewer  Construction,   East  Market  Street   Subway 


Delaware  Avenue  Elevated  Railway 
Schuylkill  River  Bridge 


such  size,  as  to  entirely  preclude  the  idea  of  working  a  bucket  between  them,  and  the  ex- 
cavated material  had  to  be  removed  by  tunneling. 

The  material  below  the  structures  was  either  cast  or  wheeled  to  a  point  from 
which  it  could  be  taken  to  the  surface  in  buckets  in  the  usual  manner.  Often  the  space 
occupied  by  a  duct  manhole  near  a  street  intersection  was  used  for  the  purpose  of  a  shaft, 
the  cables  in  the  manhole  being  first  drawn  to  one  side  and  boxed  in  and  the  manhole 
demolished. 

Some  conduits,  notably  those  made  up  of  creosoted  wood  ducts,  commonly  called 
pump  logs,  could  be  moved  aside  without  injury;  but  others,  such  as  the  wrought  iron  pipes 
carrying  light  and  power  cables,  were  inflexible  and  had  to  be  maintained  in  position. 
Terra  cotta  ducts,  enveloped  in  concrete  casings,  were  likewise  immovable,  and  had  to  be 
supported  in  the  timbering  in  practically  the  same  position  they  occupied  in  the  ground. 
All  of  the  structures,  conduits  and  pipes  were  either  blocked  up  from  the  trench  timbering 
or  suspended  by  wire  cables  or  wooden  hangers. 

The  high  pressure  fire  service  pipe,  in  addition  to  being  blocked  up  from  the  timber, 
was  firmly  held  in  place  by  four  3  inch  by  9  inch  struts,  abutting  against  the  pipe  so  as  to 
prevent  any  movement  whatever. 

The  old  abandoned  wooden  water  pipes  and  several  lines  of  abandoned  conduits  were 
removed  as  they  were  encountered.  The  two  lines  of  6  inch  cast  iron  water  pipes,  which 
had  been  in  service  about  76  years,  were  replaced  by  10  inch  lines  on  each  side  of  the 
street. 

The  20  inch  water  distribution  pipe,  which  is  a  modern  structure,  was  relaid  in  the 
centre  of  the  street,  to  allow  the  laying  of  a  new  line  of  ducts  for  the  Keystone  Telephone 
Company,  whose  old  conduit  was  in  the  way  of  the  Subway  and  sewers. 

The  Market  Street  sewer  system  which  had  to  be  replaced,  had  not  been  built  at  any 
one  operation,  but  had  been  extended  from  time  to  time.  Much  of  it  had  been  built  before 
the  consolidation  of  the  townships,  districts  and  boroughs,  which  subsequently  became 
the  City  of  Philadelphia. 

It  was  apparent  that  very  little  attention  had  been  given  to  the  grade  of  the  invert, 
and  none  whatever  to  the  hydraulic  grade  line  due  to  a  storm  covering  the  drainage  basin 
coincident  with  high  tide  in  the  river. 

The  sewer,  excepting  a  small  section  built  in  1898,  was  found  to  be  in  a  badly  dilap- 
idated condition,  and  was  often  considerably  distorted ;  the  sewer  invert  in  many  cases  ap- 
peared to  be  laid  without  the  use  of  any  cementing  material  of  any  kind. 

Owing  to  abrupt  grade  changes  and  to  defective  junctions  with  intersecting  sewers, 
a  considerable  part  of  the  sewer  cross-section  (at  times  as  much  as  50  per  cent.)  was  found 
to  be  obstructed  with  inorganic  sediment  which  had  been  deposited  during  many  years. 


These  defects,  together  with  its  fundamental  defect  of  being  too  small  to  accommodate 
the  flow,  caused  backing  up  during  excessive  storm — a  condition  indicated  in  the  specifica- 
tions for  the  sewers,  by  a  clause  which  pointed  out  that  the  sewers  at  times  "worked  under 
a  head."  It  was  necessary,  therefore,  to  provide  for  sealing  house  services  and  other  con- 
nections against  back  flow. 

The  only  successful  method  discovered  was  the  relaying  of  the  entire  connection  with 
a  temporary  one  of  light  weight  cast  iron  soil  pipe  with  leaded  joints,  across  the  excava- 
tion. This  method  was  subsequently  adopted  on  the  entire  work. 

As  the  new  sewers  were  completed  the  house  drainage  was  turned  into  them,  as  well 
as  the  flow  from  the  old  sewer.  But  it  was  impossible  to  build  the  new  sewers  continuously 
because  of  obstructions.  The  flow  was,  therefore,  turned  into  the  north  and  south  sewers 
alternately  as  the  gaps  were  closed  up,  and  the  sewers  became  continuous  to  the  river. 

The  temporary  connections  between  the  old  and  the  new  sewers  were  made  at  the 
following  places: 

West  of  Fourth  Street,  into  the  north  sewer; 

East  of  Eighth  Street,  into  the  south  sewer; 

East  of  Tenth  Street,  into  the  north  sewer; 

At  Eleventh  Street,  into  the  south  sewer; 

At  Twelfth  Street,  into  the  south  sewer; 

At  Thirteenth  Street,  into  the  north  sewer. 

Because  of  a  gap  in  the  south  sewer  west  of  Eighth  Street,  which  could  not  be  closed 
at  the  time,  the  entire  sewage  flow  between  Eighth  and  Thirteenth  Streets  on  the  south  side 
was  pumped  across  the  street  into  the  north  sewer,  which  had  been  completed  to  that  point 
for  a  period  of  over  six  months. 

Two  4  inch  electrically  driven  centrifugal  pumps  were  used  for  this  purpose.  One 
pump  was  of  ample  capacity  to  handle  the  flow,  and  the  other  was  provided  as  a  reserve. 

The  working  capacity  provided  by  the  new  sewers  is  about  four  times  that  of  the  old 
when  the  latter  was  clean  and  unobstructed. 

Among  the  pipes  which  were  found  in  service  were  the  two  6  inch  lines  of  cast  iron 
bell  and  spigot  water  pipe  laid  on  each  side  of  the  street  in  1822.  These  are  among  the 
first  cast  iron  water  pipes  laid  in  the  city.  They  were  imported  from  England,  no  cast 
iron  water  pipe  being  made  in  this  country  at  the  time. 

This  pipe  was  cast  in  9  foot  lengths,  and  the  bells  were  somewhat  deeper  than  those 
of  the  present  day.  It  was  cast  in  a  horizontal  position,  resulting  in  a  thickness  varying 
from  J  inch  to  |  inch.  When  uncovered  and  no  longer  supported  by  the  earth,  it  was 
ready  to  go  to  pieces  on  the  slightest  provocation;  in  many  cases  without  any  provo- 
cation at  all.  It  was  possible  to  drive  a  nail  into  the  best  of  it  with  very  little  exertion. 


On  both  sides  of  the  street  the  excavation  brought  to  light  the  old  wooden  water  pipes 
which  were  laid  in  the  year  1799  and  first  used  in  1801.  These  pipes  were  simply 
hemlock  logs,  with  a  6  inch  hole  bored  through  them.  They  were  laid  in  continuous 
lengths,  the  end  of  one  pipe  being  cut  so  as  to  fit  into  the  adjacent  one.  Water  was  pumped 
at  Centre  Square  Water  Works,  now  the  site  of  the  City  Hall.  The  wood  was  in  most 
cases  discovered  to  be  sound. 

Among  the  conduits  encountered  was  that  of  the  National  Underground  Electric 
Company,  laid  in  1883-84  from  Second  Street  to  City  Hall.  This  is  said  to  be  the  first 
electrical  conduit  laid  in  the  City  of  Philadelphia.  It  consisted  of  about  twenty  2  inch 
tin  tubes  or  pipes  embedded  in  a  bituminous  composition.  There  were  also  found  the 
iron  pipe  conduits  of  the  Brooks  Underground  Electric  Company,  which  when  in  service 
were  filled  with  paraffine  or  some  similar  substance,  to  provide  insulation  for  the  wires. 

One  of  the  conditions  imposed  was  the  relaying  of  the  whole  length  of  the  Market 
Street  high  pressure  fire  main,  with  its  many  and  intricate  cross  connections.  The  old 
1 6  inch  line  was  dismantled  in  sections  only  after  the  new  one  was  laid  and  ready  to  con- 
nect up,  since  not  more  than  one  fire  hydrant  at  a  time  might  be  put  out  of  service. 

Both  the  old  and  the  new  lines  were  temporarily  supported  in  the  timbering.  Despite 
the  fact  that  the  line  is  at  all  times  under  a  pressure  of  50  pounds  per  square  inch,  when  not 
in  service,  and  in  time  of  fire  under  a  pressure  of  from  250  to  300  pounds,  the  service  was  never 
interfered  with.  The  new  line  and  all  the  hydrant  connections  were  tested  at  400  pounds 
per  square  inch  prior  to  putting  into  service.  The  line,  as  long  as  it  was  supported  in  the 
timbering,  was  patrolled  night  and  day  for  the  purpose  of  observing  its  condition. 

Since  there  is  no  circulation  in  the  line  when  not  in  actual  fire  service,  it  was  thought 
expedient  to  protect  it  against  freezing.  The  entire  pipe  line  and  all  its  connections  were 
wrapped  with  two  i  inch  layers  of  hair  felt,  wired  on  and  covered  on  the  outside  with  tar 
paper  to  protect  the  felt  from  the  rain  or  melting  snow.  The  edges  of  the  tar  paper  were 
lapped  at  least  6  inches,  and  hot  tar  was  applied  to  the  joints  to  make  the  covering  con- 
tinuous. 

This  same  system  of  insulation  was  applied  to  all  the  water  distribution  pipes  and  house 
services,  excepting  the  20  inch  distribution  line,  the  circulation  in  which  was  sufficient  to 
prevent  freezing. 

The  Bell  Telephone  conduits,  which  occupied  a  position  on  the  south  side  of  the  street, 
varied  in  dimension  at  different  points.  The  average  size  was  not  far  from  four  feet  square. 
This  conduit  seems  to  have  been  an  experimental  one,  and  was  composed  of  several  quite 
distinct  types  of  ducts.  A  portion  of  the  line  was  fibre  duct,  another  of  creosoted  wood 
duct,  another  of  terra  cotta  duct,  and  still  another  of  wrought  iron  pipe  with  screw  joints. 
All  of  these  ducts,  excepting  the  wooden  ones,  were  encased  in  concrete,  which  had  to  be 


stripped  off  before  this  conduit  could  be  shifted  or  raised.  This  was  a  tedious  operation, 
which  had  to  be  done  without  interfering  with  the  service.  The  ducts  not  occupied  by 
telephone  cables  were  removed.  It  was  often  necessary  either  to  shift  the  old  ducts  aside 
or  to  jack  them  up.  Each  individual  duct  was  suspended  from  the  upper  cross  brace 
with  wire  during  the  process  of  laying  the  new  line.  The  new  Bell  Telephone  conduit  is 
built  of  terra  cotta  multiple  duct  (6-way)  encased  in  concrete.  In  many  places  it  occupies 
practically  the  same  location  in  the  street  as  did  the  original. 

Owing  to  the  obstructions  encountered  and  to  the  incidental  work  it  is  difficult  to 
make  a  direct  comparison  between  this  work  and  that  built  elsewhere  in  this  country. 
But  the  fact  remains  that  the  construction  of  nearly  6,000  feet  of  Subway,  with  five  stations, 
and  of  nearly  13,000  feet  of  sewers,  and  the  rearrangement  and  rebuilding  of  the  entire 
system  of  underground  structures,  as  well  as  the  underpinning  of  the  buildings,  and  various 
other  work  incident  to  the  construction,  in  the  short  time  of  two  years,  is  an  accomplish- 
ment which  compares  very  favorably  with  the  best  in  the  construction  of  similar  works. 

The  maximum  number  of  men  employed,  by  classes,  was  as  follows: 

Excavation,  about : 1000 

Timbermen,  about 160 

Carpenters,  about 125 

Concrete,  about 300 

Structural  steel  erectors,  about 95 

Engineers,  motor  runners  and  pumpmen,  about 40 

Machinists,  blacksmiths,  pipe  fitters,  etc.,  about 30 

Electricians,  riggers,  watchmen,  about 35 

Underpinners,  about 50 

Drivers,  about 200 

Double  teams  employed,  about 200 

The  quantities  of  the  principal  items  of  construction  used  are  as  follows: 

Excavation 398,661  cubic  yards 

Concrete 64,000  cubic  yards 

Brick  masonry ^ 2,000  cubic  yards 

Underpinning 2,122  cubic  yards 

Electric  cable  ducts i ,2 75,000  duct  feet 

Cast  iron 200  tons 

Structural  steel 3>6o5  tons 

Reinforcing  rods  for  concrete 2,650  tons 

Terra  cotta  pipe 10,050  lineal  feet 

Reinforced  concrete  sewers,  from  3  ft.  diam.  to  7  ft.  x  7  ft ".585  lineal  feet 

Vault  lights 23,000  square  feet 


Manhole  in  Subway  High  and  Low  Tension  Cables,  Sansom  St.  Substation 

Switchboard  AViring  Conduits,  Delaware  Ave.  Power  Plant         Ash  Hoist.  Delaware  Avenue  Power  Plant 


Subway  Platform,  Showing  Cross-over  from   Platform  to  Platform 
Subway  Platform,   Showing  Ticket  Booth 


J.  J.  SULLIVAN 

Director  Philadelphia  Rapid  Transit  Company 


SCHUYLKILL  RIVER  BRIDGE  AND  ELEVATED   RAILWAY 

STRUCTURES 

'HE  Schuylkill  River  Bridge  was  commenced  on  July  6,  1903, 
and  was  completed  in  August,  1905.  It  is  the  twentieth 
bridge  constructed  over  the  Schuylkill  River  within  the  city 
limits,  ten  of  which  are  for  streets,  and  ten  for  railways. 

The  structure  is  576  feet  long  and  carries  four  tracks, 
two  for  the  elevated  railway  trains,  which  operate  on  the 
elevated  structure,  and  thence  pass  to  the  Subway  east  of 
the  river,  and  two  for  the  street  railway  cars  which  converge 
from  the  surface  lines  in  West  Philadelphia  into  the  Subway. 
It  was  decided  to  bridge  the  river,  as  the  cost  of  tunnelling  and  the  difficulty  in  pro- 
viding space  for  an  incline  from  a  tunnel  to  the  elevated  structure  was  practically  prohibi- 
tory. After  an  examination  of  the  Market  Street  city  bridge,  with  a  view  to  altering  and 
reinforcing  it  to  carry  the  elevated  railway,  it  was  decided  to  build  a  new  bridge  with  its 
centre  line  100  feet  north  of  the  centre  line  of  the  city  bridge.  The  approaches  on  each 
side  of  the  river  were  planned  to  be  built  within  the  new  limits  of  Market  Street  as  widened 
on  the  north  by  ordinance  of  Councils  passed  in  1902.  Space  was  thus  provided  for  the 
curves  connecting  the  bridge  with  the  Subway  and  the  Elevated.  The  elevation  of  the 
bridge,  and  consequently  the  grade  on  the  eastern  approach  incline,  was  determined  by  the 
overhead  clearance  needed  at  the  tracks  of  the  railroad  on  the  east  bank  of  the  Schuylkill. 
This  was  made  17  feet  4  inches,  equal  to  other  overhead  clearances  in  the  vicinity  on  this 
railroad.  The  clearance  line  over  the  channel  is  26  feet  4^  inches  above  mean  high  water. 
The  two  outside  tracks  on  the  structure  are  used  for  the  street  cars  and  are  about  at 
the  level  of  the  surface  of  Market  Street.  The  two  inner  tracks  carry  the  elevated  railway 
trains,  which  ascend  to  the  west  on  an  inclined  floor  on  a  4.32  per  cent,  grade  to  meet 
the  elevated  structure. 

The  east  and  west  channel  piers  and  the  west  shore  piers  were  founded  by  timber 
caissons  sunk  by  the  pneumatic  method  to  bed  rock  and  filled  with  concrete.  The  east 
shore  pier  was  built  in  open  coffer-dam  and  founded  on  bed  rock.  The  depth  of  the  rock 

at  the  various  piers  is  as  follows : 

East  shore  pier  16  feet  below  ground. 

East  river  pier  16  feet  below  mean  high  water. 

West  river  pier  39  feet  below  mean  high  water. 

West  shore  pier  37  feet  below  mean  high  water. 

The  foundation  for  the  west  shore  pier  comprised  two  caissons  united  by  an  arch. 
Some  interference  was  encountered  with  the  original  coffer-dam  for  the  "  Permanent  Bridge" 


over  the  Schuylkill  River  on  the  line  of  Market  Street.  This  bridge  was  finished  in 
1804.  It  was  noteworthy  in  its  day,  and  was  indeed  a  remarkable  achievement  without 
modern  appliances. 

The  caissons  were  successfully  founded  without  special  difficulty  and  gave  positive 
control  of  the  bottoms  upon  which  the  foundations  were  built,  since  they  were  thoroughly 
inspected  and  tested  before  concreting.  Concrete  of  the  following  mixture  was  used :  100 
pounds  of  Portland  cement;  3  cubic  feet  of  fine  gravel,  or  coarse  sand;  5  cubic  feet  of 
crushed  stone.  On  the  east  river  pier,  where  some  of  the  concrete  was  deposited  in  water, 
the  concrete  was  lowered  in  buckets  with  trap  doors  at  the  bottom  to  discharge  as  closely 
as  possible  to  the  desired  location,  and  to  prevent  wash. 

The  piers  above  the  caisson  foundations  are  built  of  a  hard  sandstone  quarried  at' 
Lumberville  on  the  Delaware  River.  The  coping  and  the  bridge  seats  are  of  granite. 
In  this  work  is  also  included  the  reconstruction  of  part  of  the  25  foot  retaining  wall  west  of 
the  Pennsylvania  Railroad  tracks  on  the  west  bank  of  the  river.  This  was  remodeled 
to  serve  as  an  abutment  for  the  west  span  and  the  first  columns  of  the  elevated  railway. 
As  the  retaining  wall  was  built  on  piles  part  of  it  over  the  site  of  the  abutment  had  to  be 
torn  down  and  remodeled  to  equalize  the  load  of  the  bridge  structure  and  the  pressure 
of  the  25  feet  of  earth  behind  the  wall. 

The  foundations  for  the  west  legs  of  the  tower  at  the  eastern  end  of  the  elevated 
railway  and  immediately  west  of  the  abutment  on  the  filling  back  of  the  retaining  wall  was 
also  included  in  the  work.  Steel  cylinders  4  feet  in  diameter  were  sunk  to  good  gravel 
bottom  below  the  original  natural  surface,  the  lower  portion  of  the  sinking  being  accom- 
plished by  the  pneumatic  process.  The  cylinders  were  filled  with  concrete.  To  keep 
the  cylinders  in  their  proper  position  relative  to  the  abutment  and  to  avoid  injurious  second- 
ary stress  in  the  tower  above,  the  cylinders  were  connected  to  the  abutment  by  struts 
embedded  in  concrete. 

The  superstructure  comprises  five  spans,  three  of  riveted  lattice  and  two  of  plate 
girder  construction.  The  riveted  spans  include  the  main  channel  span  in  the  centre, 
which  is  214.59  feet  long,  centre  to  centre  of  piers;  and  the  adjoining  spans  on  the  east  (98.27 
feet)  and  west  (90.05  feet).  The  span  at  each  end  is  a  plate  girder,  connecting  the  bridge 
with  the  Subway  on  the  east  and  the  Elevated  on  the  west. 

Each  of  the  lattice  spans  has  four  trusses,  with  the  inclined  tracks  for  the  elevated  rail- 
way trains  between  the  two  inner  trusses,  and  with  the  tracks  for  the  street  cars  immediately 
within  the  outer  trusses  and  approximately  on  the  level  of  Market  Street.  A  sidewalk 
6  feet  6  inches  wide  is  built  on  brackets  outside  of  the  north  truss.  While  all  four  tracks 
are  at  about  the  same  level  at  the  eastern  end,  at  the  west  end  the  train  tracks  are  23.8  feet 
above  those  for  the  street  cars,  so  that  the  west  plate  girder  span  is  a  double  decked  structure. 


The  bridge  was  designed  for  a  live  load  consisting  of  elevated  trains  with  25,000 
pounds  on  each  axle  and  of  surface  cars  with  12,000  pounds  on  each  axle. 

Electric  cables  are  carried  under  the  floor  of  the  bridge  in  concrete  covered  conduits 
hung  from  special  steel  stringers,  which  are  supported  upon  the  cross  floor  beams.  The 
cement  covering  was  crowned  between  the  stringers  to  shed  rain  water  and  was  reinforced 
with  wire  mesh.  Duct  manholes  were  built  at  the  east  shore  pier  and  at  the  west  river 
pier,  fire-proofed  on  the  interior. 

At  the  east  end  the  conduits  are  a  continuation  of  the  conduits  built  into  the  south 
wall  of  the  Subway.  They  are  carried  under  the  outside  tracks  until  they  reach  a  junction 
chamber  at  the  end  of  the  main  bridge  span.  At  this  point  they  cross  to  the  inner  tracks, 
under  which  they  are  carried  at  the  level  of  the  outside  tracks. 

The  quantities  of  the  principal  items  of  construction  on  the  work  are  as  follows : 

Excavation 3,209  cubic  yards 

Concrete 3,292  cubic  yards 

Stone  masonry 2,001  cubic  yards 

Bolts  and  rods  in  caissons 65,540  pounds 

Lumber  in  caissons 353,000  feet  board  measure 

Temporary  piles 145  piles 

Lumber  in  temporary  platforms 49,55^  feet  board  measure 

Structural  steel  in  superstructure 1,383  tons 

Work  on  the  foundations  of  the  Elevated  Railway  on  West  Market  Street  was  begun 
on  October  17,  1904. 

The  foundations  are  built  of  concrete,  in  the  proportion  of  100  pounds  of  cement,  3 
cubic  feet  of  fine  gravel  or  coarse  sand,  and  6  parts  of  crushed  stone.  The  standard  piers, 
where  good  sand  or  gravel  bottom  was  found,  are  truncated  pyramids,  5  feet  high,  4  feet 
by  4  feet  at  the  top  and  7  feet  by  7  feet  at  the  bottom,  resting  on  a  square  base  8  feet  by 
8  feet  in  size  and  i  foot  6  inches  thick.  Four  anchor  bolts  if  inches  in  diameter  were  built 
in  each  pier  by  which  to  secure  the  feet  of  the  columns  supporting  the  overhead  structure. 
These  bolts  were  inserted  into  3  inch  sheet  steel  tubes  to  facilitate  final  adjustment  after 
the  piers  were  built. 

Over  most  of  the  line  the  soil  under  the  footings  consists  of  good  sand  or  gravel  with 
considerable  inferior  material  where  Market  Street  had  been  filled  above  the  level  of  the 
original  roadbed.  In  the  latter  case  foundations  comprise  reinforced  concrete  plates 
upon  which  the  pyramidal  piers  rest,  the  load  per  square  foot  on  the  soil  being  reduced 
to  from  i  to  ij  tons,  and  in  exceptional  cases,  to  less  than  i  ton.  Many  of  the  piers 
on  the  western  part  of  the  line  are  founded  on  bed  rock,  which  is  relatively  near  the  surface, 


the  rock  being  excavated  to  a  depth  of  6  feet  6  inches  as  provision  for  the  removal  of  the 
adjoining  rock  in  the  placing  of  sewers  or  other  future  underground  structures. 

Many  pipes  and  sewers  were  encountered  in  the  work,  water  and  gas  mains  being 
carried  through  the  concrete  piers  in  sleeves  to  provide  free  space  above  and  below  the 
pipes  to  avoid  breakage  if  settlement  took  place. 

Between  Thirty-third  and  Thirty-sixth  Streets  the  foundations  on  the  north  side 
enclose  and  form  a  part  of  a  sewer  4  feet  6  inches  in  diameter.  In  the  latter  case  the 
brick  sewer  was  cut  out  and  replaced  by  concrete,  so  that  the  sewer  forms  a  part  of  the  pier. 

Where  Thirtieth  Street  passes  under  Market  Street,  the  latter  being  supported  upon 
a  plate  girder  bridge,  the  foundations  are  built  below  the  bed  of  Thirtieth  Street,  the  Ele- 
vated Railway  columns  extending  up  through  cast  iron  curbs  in  the  deck  of  the  bridge, 
so  that  no  part  of  the  column  is  in  contact  with  the  bridge.  The  construction  of  the 
foundations  at  Thirtieth  Street  required  the  underpinning  of  the  old  piers  at  the  curb  line 
of  Thirtieth  Street,  which  supports  the  bridge  overhead,  as  the  Elevated  Railway  founda- 
tions were  close  to  the  old  piers  and  extended  considerably  below  them. 

The  work  comprises  785  foundations,  including  those  for  the  stations,  extending 
from  the  west  end  of  the  Schuylkill  River  Bridge  to  the  end  of  the  elevated  structure  near 
the  Millbourne  Mills. 

The  Elevated  Railway  comprises  a  two-track  viaduct,  on  the  centre  line  of  Market 
Street;  connected  with  the  west  end  of  the  Schuylkill  River  Bridge  by  reverse  curves  on 
a  radius  of  420  feet,  with  transition  ends.  It  extends  in  a  straight  line  to  a  point  west  of 
Sixty-third  Street. 

The  superstructure  of  the  Elevated  Railway  differs  from  the  elevated  railways  in  other 
American  cities,  in  the  solid  floor  provided  to  prevent  dripping  into  the  street,  and  in  the 
precautions  taken  to  reduce  the  noise  as  much  as  possible.  The  steel  floor  is  covered  with 
concrete,  on  which  is  laid  the  rock  ballast ;  cross  ties  are  embedded  in  the  ballast,  support- 
ing the  running  rails  in  the  usual  way  with  tie  construction.  The  reduction  of  noise  is 
quite  satisfactory. 

The  first  columns  and  girders  of  the  superstructure  were  erected  at  Forty-fifth  Street 
on  August  22,  1905. 

The  structure  is  19,377  feet  long,  comprising  18,697  feet  of  solid  floor  construction 
with  cross  ties  and  ballast,  and  680  feet  of  open  floor  construction  with  cross  ties  laid  upon 
deck  girders.  The  main  longitudinal  girders  are  of  lattice  construction  throughout 
except  for  322  feet  of  plate  girders  on  the  reverse  curve  west  of  the  Schuylkill  River  Bridge. 
There  are  eight  passenger  stations,  located  at  the  following  streets,  Thirty-second,  Thirty- 
sixth,  Fortieth,  Forty-sixth,  Fifty-second,  Sixtieth,  and  Sixty-third.  The  length  of  spans 
is  generally  about  50  feet,  with  special  lengths  at  the  cross  streets.  The  longest  span  is 


W.  H.  SHELMERDINE 

Director  Philadelphia  Rapid  Transit  Company 


i  jo  feet,  at  the  crossing  of  the  tracks  of  the  Philadelphia  and  West  Chester  Traction 
Company  on  the  West  Chester  Pike,  opposite  the  Millbourne  Mills. 

The  solid  floor  construction  consists  of  riveted  cross  girders  spaced  10  to  n  feet  apart 
on  the  longitudinal  lattice  girders.  On  the  upper  flanges  of  the  cross  girders  is  supported 
a  trough  consisting  of  longitudinal  "Z"  bars  with  flat  plates  on  the  tops  of  the  "Z"  bars, 
and  on  the  bottoms,  plates  with  a  flat  longitudinal  downward  dish.  The  dish  on  the  plates 
is  used  to  collect  possible  seepage  through  the  concrete  bed,  and  conduct  it  to  holes  specially 
punched,  having  drips  on  their  lower  edges,  thus  avoiding  the  destruction  of  the  paint 
by  alkaline  water.  The  steel  floor  is  covered  with  Portland  cement  concrete  in  the  pro- 
portion of  loo  pounds  cement,  3  parts  of  graded  fine  gravel  or  coarse  sand  and  6  parts 
graded  crushed  stone  ranging  from  one-quarter  inch  to  three-quarters  inch  in  size.  Upon 
the  top  of  the  concrete  a  granolithic  mixture  was  placed  before  the  concrete  had  set. 

The  concrete  was  reinforced  with  f  inch  square  deformed  bars  to  resist  shrinkage  and 
temperature  cracks  and  prevent  leakage.  The  steel  floor  was  painted  with  alkali  resist- 
ing paint,  an  additional  coat  being  given  to  the  part  of  the  floor  where  the  concrete  was 
thinnest,  along  the  line  of  the  middle  drainage  gutter.  The  rods  were  placed  transversely 
i  foot  apart  and  longitudinally  18  inches  apart.  The  concrete,  having  the  fine  and  coarse 
aggregates  well  graded  in  size,  and  being  deposited  as  wet  as  the  conditions  would  allow, 
forms  with  the  granolithic  coating  on  top,  and  the  steel  reinforcement,  a  satisfactory  pro- 
tection of  the  steel  floor.  The  concrete  mixture  was  made  not  too  rich  so  as  not  to  induce 
shrinkage  cracks. 

To  prevent  slipping  of  the  ballast  on  grades,  checks  or  projections  i  inch  high  above 
the  concrete,  were  built  with  granolithic  surface,  these  checks  being  6  inches  wide  and 
12  inches  long,  spaced  i  foot  6  inches  centre  to  centre.  Two  rows  of  the  checks  were 
placed  in  the  bed  under  each  track. 

Drainage  is  provided  by  sloping  the  deck  on  3  per  cent,  transverse  grade  downward 
toward  a  middle  gutter.  Longitudinal  dams  with  scuppers  form  the  gutter  and  retain  the 
ballast  in  the  bed  of  each  track.  The  gutter  has  the  same  grade  as  the  structure  except 
where  the  latter  is  less  than  i  per  cent.,  no  gutter  grade  having  a  grade  of  less  than  i  per 
cent.  The  water  is  discharged  at  each  column  bent,  and  is  conducted  to  collector  boxes 
at  the  tops  of  the  south  columns,  whence  it  passes  to  the  street  level  by  3  inch  cast  iron  soil 
pipes  with  a  cast  iron  spout  immediately  above  the  fenders.  At  the  stations  all  rain 
water  from  the  roof  and  shelters  and  also  from  the  roadway  is  conducted  to  the  city  sew- 
ers, underground  longitudinal  collector  drains  being  placed  where  necessary. 

The  station  platforms  are  350  feet  long,  250  feet  being  built  to  the  permanent  width 
of  10  feet  4  inches,  and  50  feet  at  each  end  being  made  temporarily  4  feet  wide  without 
overhead  shelter.  The  designs  provide  for  shelters  and  platforms  of  the  full  width  for 


the  entire  length  of  350  feet.  The  shelters  are  supported  by  frames  consisting  of  two  light 
structural  posts,  the  line  of  posts  nearest  the  track  being  4  feet  3  inches  back  from  the 
edge  of  the  platform  and  the  posts  furthest  from  the  tracks  being  located  in  the  lines  of 
the  railings.  The  posts  are  20  feet  apart  centre  to  centre  longitudinally,  making  very 
little  obstruction  to  the  platform.  The  standard  station  building  is  57  feet  i  inch  long 
and  17  feet  3  inches  wide,  comprising  a  waiting  room  at  either  end  19  feet  by  9  feet  in 
interior  size,  between  which  is  the  entrance  lobby  containing  a  ticket  booth  on  each  side 
of  the  entrance. 

In  each  waiting  room  a  toilet  room  has  been  provided  with  tiled  floors  and  tiled  wain- 
scoting, and  the  best  modern  sanitary  plumbing.  The  waiting  rooms  and  ticket  booths 
are  heated  by  electric  heaters. 

The  exterior  of  the  buildings  is  covered  with  copper,  and  all  roofs  received  felt,  pitch 
and  slag  covering,  except  the  steep  shelters  over  the  stairways,  where  the  roofs  are  of  tin. 

The  elevation  of  the  station  platforms  above  the  sidewalk  averages  about  30  feet. 
Four  stairways,  at  each  of  the  four  street  corners,  give  access  to  the  stations.  The  stair- 
ways leading  from  the  street  are  5  feet  8  inches  wide,  certain  stairways  in  special  situations 
being  wider.  All  stairways  are  sub-divided  by  landings,  the  maximum  number  of  risers  in 
a  flight  being  fourteen  and  the  landings  being  usually  5  feet  long.  One  foot-bridge  has 
been  built  under  the  'structure  at  each  station,  so  that  passengers  may  reach  either  the 
east  or  the  west  bound  platforms  without  crossing  on  the  street  surface. 

Open  hearth  steel  of  about  60,000  pounds  ultimate  strength  was  used  for  the  entire 
structure,  and  all  field  riveting  was  done  by  pneumatic  hammers.  The  material  was 
painted  one  coat  at  the  shop  and  two  coats  after  erection.  Expansion  joints  are  placed 
in  the  structure  about  200  feet  apart,  including  usually  4  spans. 

The  main  structure  was  erected  with  two  travelers  and  two  crews,  one  working  from 
the  western  end,  near  Sixty-third  Street  toward  Forty-fifth  Street,  and  the  other  carrying 
on  the  work  from  Forty-fifth  Street  to  join  the  Schuylkill  River  Bridge.  Travelers  moving 
forward  on  runways  on  the  steel  deck  were  used,  having  two  steel  booms  65  feet  long. 
The  framing  to  which  the  booms  were  connected  consisted  of  two  vertical  posts  with  X- 
bracing  between  them,  each  vertical  post  supported  by  a  stiff  back  leg  attached  to  the 
framing  of  the  traveling  platform.  Erection  was  finally  completed  on  July  14,  1906, 
with  the  joining  of  the  east  and  west  sections  at  Forty-fifth  Street. 

The  first  train  to  run  from  the  Sixty-ninth  Street  Terminal  over  the  Elevated  Railway 
and  the  Schuylkill  River  Bridge  to  the  Fifteenth  Street  Subway  station  made  the  trip  on 
Sunday  morning,  January  13,  1907. 

The  railway  was  opened  to  public  travel  on  the  morning  of  Monday,  March  17,  1907, 
with  trains  of  two  cars  operating  on  five  minute  headway  between  Sixty-ninth  Street  and 


HENRY  PHIPPS 

Director  Philadelphia  Rapid  Transit  Company 


Rotary    Converters,   Sansom    Street    Substation 
Generators,  Thirty-fourth   and  Market  Streets 


Exterior  of   Delaware  Avenue  Power  Plant 
Interior    of  Delaware  Avenue   Power  Plant 


Fifteenth  Street,  not  stopping  at  the  uncompleted  stations  at  Thirty-sixth,  Forty-sixth, 
and  Sixty-third  Streets. 

The  quantities  of  the  principal  items  of  construction  are  as  follows : 

Excavation 31,000    cubic  yards 

Concrete  in  foundations 10,377    cubic  yards 

Concrete  in  deck 10,000    cubic  yards 

Reinforcing  rods  in  concrete  deck 141    tons 

Structural  steel  and  iron  work : 

Main  superstructure,  steel 23,048.6  tons 

Pipe  railing  fence  (32,800  lineal  feet) 210.4  tons 

Drainage  appurtenances 64.6  tons 

Foundation  grillages  and  bolts 183.7  tons 

Duct  bridge  over  Thirtieth  Street 6.0  tons 

23.S07-3  tons 

The  tracks  of  the  East  Market  Street  Subway,  after  turning  northward  on  the  curve 
near  the  intersection  of  Market  and  Front  Streets,  emerge  through  two  portals  and  ascend 
on  an  incline  of  5  per  cent.,  to  meet  the  Delaware  Avenue  Elevated  Railway.  This  begins 
at  the  intersection  of  Arch  and  Water  Streets  and  extends  eastward  to  Delaware  Avenue, 
and  thence  southward  along  Delaware  Avenue  to  the  South  Street  terminus.  The  incline 
is  built  on  property  purchased  by  the  Company,  occupying  a  narrow  tract  637  feet  9  inches 
long  between  Front  and  Water  Streets  from  the  south  building  line  of  Arch  Street  to  the 
north  line  of  the  second  property  from  Market  Street.  All  the  buildings  on  this  tract,  many 
of  them  old  warehouses  identified  with  the  early  commercial  history  of  the  city,  were  razed. 

The  Millard  Construction  Company  began  work  June  20,  1907.  The  work  includes 
retaining  walls  and  a  reinforced  concrete  viaduct  about  290  feet  long,  having  a  concrete 
abutment  at  the  northern  end  to  receive  the  girders  of  the  Elevated  Railway,  and  one  at  its 
southern  end.  From  the  southern  abutment  a  cut  and  fill  extends  between  concrete  re- 
taining walls,  since  the  grade  of  the  roadbed  intersects  and  descends  below  the  grade  of 
Water  Street  on  the  east  (from  1 8  to  20  feet  below  Front  Street)  to  meet  the  grade  of  the 
Subway  tracks  at  the  portals.  The  construction  work  also  included  tearing  down  part  of  the 
old  buildings,  the  building  of  foundations  for  a  future  building  over  the  incline,  drains  and 
connections  to  the  sewers,  and  a  reinforced  concrete  sidewalk  on  Front  Street  over  old  vaults 
which  occupied  a  large  proportion  of  the  space  under  the  easterly  sidewalk  of  Front  Street. 

Filbert  Street,  an  8  foot  passageway  for  pedestrians,  was  closed  by  authority  of 
Councils  and  made  the  site  of  the  abutment  at  the  south  end  of  the  concrete  viaduct. 

Front  Street  is  so  much  higher  than  Water  Street  that  the  second  stories  of  the  proper- 
ties facing  on  Water  Street  formed  the  cellars  on  the  Front  Street  side.  Foundations  for 
the  new  concrete  walk  on  Front  Street  were  made  as  follows :  Between  Arch  Street  and  the 


abutment  on  the  site  of  Filbert  Street,  the  old  cellar  walls  along  the  east  building  line  of 
Front  Street  were  braced  against  the  cross  walls  of  the  viaduct.  South  of  this  point  a  re- 
taining wall  83  feet  6  inches  long  was  built;  and  thence  south  to  the  portals  the  old  masonry 
was  stripped  of  the  upper  ins  table  portion  and  was  rebuilt  and  masked  by  a  new  brick  wall. 

The  viaduct  is  arranged  to  utilize  the  headroom  beneath  the  railway  for  storage  or 
other  purposes,  the  cross  walls  and  railway  floor  forming  transverse  chambers.  The 
two  southerly  chambers  contain  one  of  the  air  compressor  plants  for  the  signal  service. 
. ,. , ,  The  viaduct  consists  of  a  floor  slab  12 \  inches  deep,  supported  upon  cross  walls  2  feet 
thick  with  openings  in  the  walls  6  feet  to  7  feet  9  inches  wide  between  the  chambers.  The 
walls  are  spaced  15  feet  3  inches  centre  to  centre.  They  are  reinforced  both  vertically 
and  horizontally  to  resist  flexural  stresses  and  to  prevent  shrinkage  cracks. 

The  track  on  the  viaduct  is  laid  with  cross  ties  and  ballast ;  the  track  south  of  the  via- 
duct is  supported  upon  longitudinal  concrete  walls,  one  under  each  rail,  the  surface  be- 
tween and  below  the  rails  being  covered  with  concrete,  and  the  rails  carried  on  channels, 
as  in  the  Subway.  The  walls  were  built  below  the  rails  to  avoid  settlement,  as  the  earth 
fill  might  otherwise  have  produced  dangerous  inequalities  in  the  track  at  the  juncture  of 
the  solid  floor  on  the  viaduct  and  the  fill  to  the  south. 

A  brick  parapet  wall  6  feet  high  has  been  built  along  the  house  lines  of  Arch,  Front 
and  Water  Streets,  to  exclude  trespassers.  Gangways  are  provided  on  both  sides  of  the 
viaduct  on  reinforced  concrete  cantilever  construction,  protected  by  pipe  railings. 

The  alignment  of  the  tracks,  beginning  at  the  portals  of  the  Subway,  comprises  the 
north  ends  of  the  transition  curves  leading  from  the  Subway,  whence  the  track  is  on  tangent 
for  about  347  feet,  after  which  the  line  passes  to  the  right,  the  sharpest  curves  of  the  inside 
rails  for  the  east  bound  and  west  bound  tracks  having  respective  radii  of  129.32  and  143.32 
feet,  with  transition  ends.  The  superelevation  of  rail  on  the  curves  is  5  inches  on  both 
the  east  bound  and  west  bound  tracks. 

The  material  in  excavation  was  good  sand  and  gravel,  in  agreement  with  the  results 
of  preliminary  borings,  and  no  unusual  methods  were  required  on  the  work. 

The  quantities  of  the  principal  items  of  construction  are  as  follows : 

Excavation 1,396  cubic  yards 

Concrete 3,303  cubic  yards 

Reinforcing  rods  for  concrete 63  tons 

Structural  steel  and  iron 5  tons 

Granolithic  sidewalk 1,264  cubic  yards 

Earth  fill 3,479  cubic  yards 

The  Elevated  Railway  on  Arch  Street  and  Delaware  Avenue  leads  from  the  incline 
between  Market  and  Arch  Streets  to  the  eastern  terminus  of  the  Market  Street  system, 


JEROME  H.  LOUCHHEIM 

President  Millard  Construction  Company 


Rail  Bond  to  Channel   Plate  Single  Span   Roof.   East   Market   Street  Subway 

Shoring  up  Buildings,  Constructing   East   Market   Street   Subway  Automatic  Coupling  of  Cars 


Delaware  Avenue  Elevated  Railway 
Subway  Portal,   Front  and  Market   Streets 


West  Market  Street  Elevated  Railway 
Incline  on  Front  Street,  from  tKe  Portal  to  Arch  Street 


at  South  Street,  with  a  total  length  of  4,161  feet.  The  structure  begins  at  a  concrete  abut- 
ment at  the  northern  end  of  the  reinforced  concrete  viaduct,  and  extends  thence  by  curve 
of  138.41  feet  radius  on  the  centre  line  for  a  distance  of  403  feet  along  Arch  Street  to  a 
point  on  Delaware  Avenue  about  144  feet  south  of  the  south  house  line  of  Arch  Street. 
After  rounding  the  curve  into  Delaware  Avenue,  the  tracks  diverge  to  40  feet  9  inches 
centre  to  centre  to  embrace  the  island  platform  for  the  passenger  station  which  extends 
from  Market  to  Chestnut  Streets.  From  Chestnut  Street  southward  the  structure  is  40 
feet  9  inches  wide,  a  third  track  having  been  built  in  the  centre  to  the  South  Street  Ter- 
minal, which  also  has  an  island  platform.  The  length  of  the  third  track  is  1,795  feet>  ex~ 
clusive  of  the  cross-overs.  This  portion  of  the  line  was  opened  to  traffic  as  far  as 
Market  and  Chestnut  Streets  on  September  7,  1908. 

On  the  curve,  403  feet  from  Water  and  Arch  Streets  to  Delaware  Avenue,  the  structure 
has  a  solid  floor  like  the  West  Market  Street  Elevated.  Along  Delaware  Avenue  the  floor 
is  open,  with  cross  ties  laid  on  the  top  flanges  of  the  girders. 

The  foundations  for  the  columns  are  all  of  concrete,  and  are  supported  on  piles,  since 
the  entire  bed  of  Delaware  Avenue  is  made  ground.  The  row  of  columns  nearest  the  Dela- 
ware River  is  built  on  the  portion  of  Delaware  Avenue  as  widened  in  1900.  The  surface 
of  the  street  is  supported  on  pile  and  timber  platform  decking.  The  expensive  nature  of 
the  foundations  led  to  the  adoption  of  spans  averaging  75  feet  in  length,  the  longest  being 
85  feet.  The  number  of  piles  in  the  foundations  varies  from  twelve  to  thirty-six.  Upon 
the  tops  of  the  pile  foundations  reinforced  concrete  piers  were  founded,  reinforcement  in 
the  concrete  platforms  providing  for  equal  distribution  of  the  load  over  the  piles  in  each 
foundation. 

To  prevent  distortion  of  the  columns,  due  to  lateral  movement  of  the  pile  foundations 
owing  to  possible  gradual  settlement  of  the  artificial  bed  of  the  street,  steel  tie  rods  were 
placed  transversely  between  each  pair  of  columns. 

The  curved  structure  at  Arch  Street  comprises  three  lines  of  longitudinal  lattice 
girders  supported  on  transverse  plate  girders  which  rest  on  columns  in  the  sidewalk 
near  the  curb  lines.  This  portion  of  the  structure  is  irregular,  owing  to  the  curvature  and 
grades.  The  cross  girders  are  6  feet  8J  inches  deep  over  chord  angles;  the  longest  girder, 
extending  over  Arch  Street  on  the  east  line  of  Water  Street,  is  69  feet  long  and  weighs 
50,000  pounds. 

The  open  deck  structure  has  a  pair  of  lattice  girders  under  each  track.  These  girders 
are  6  feet  nj  inches  in  depth,  the  longest  deck  girder  being  85  feet  long  and  weighing 
25,900  pounds.  Some  other  longitudinal  girders  exceed  this  in  weight,  the  heaviest  being 
43,500  pounds.  The  section  of  the  top  chords  of  the  longitudinal  girders  was  so  composed 
as  to  avoid  cover  plates,  rivet  heads  and  other  interference  with  the  placing  of  cross  ties. 


Two  stations  have  been  built,  one  reaching  from  Market  to  Chestnut  Street,  and  the 
other  at  South  Street. 

The  station  between  Market  and  Chestnut  Streets  has  a  passenger  platform  352  feet 
3  inches  long,  exclusive  of  the  space  occupied  by  the  waiting  rooms,  and  31  feet  4  inches 
wide.  As  a  part  of  the  work  of  building  this  station,  the  150  foot  span  extending  across 
Delaware  Avenue  from  stairways  at  the  foot  of  Chestnut  Street  and  leading  to  the  Recrea- 
tion Pier,  was  removed  and  replaced  by  a  new  bridge  10  feet  and  21  feet  wide  west  and 
east  of  the  Elevated  Railway  structure,  respectively.  The  new  bridge  serves  as  a  passenger 
entrance  to  the  Chestnut  Street  end  of  the  station,  the  stairways  at  the  foot  of  Chestnut 
Street  remaining  as  originally  built.  The  bridge  also  furnishes  connection  to  the  ferry 
at  the  foot  of  Chestnut  Street.  From  the  bridge  a  main  stairway  22  feet  10  inches  wide, 
divided  into  three  passageways  by  intermediate  handrails,  leads  to  the  level  of  a  lobby 
or  underpassage,  the  middle  passage  leading  to  the  ticket  office  and  waiting  room  on  the 
level  of  the  train  platform.  The  two  outer  passages  on  the  main  stairway  form  the  exits 
from  the  underpassage,  which  is  reached  by  two  stairways  from  the  train  platform  north 
of  the  waiting  room. 

At  the  Market  Street  end  of  the  station  two  stairways  have  been  built,  each  5  feet 
ij  inches  wide,  on  the  north  and  south  sidewalks  respectively  of  Market  Street.  Each 
stairway  is  connected  by  a  foot  bridge  to  a  lobby  below  the  train  platform,  whence  a  main 
entrance  stairway  22  feet  wide  leads  to  the  ticket  office  and  waiting  room,  which  are  on  the 
level  of  the  train  platform.  South  of  and  under  the  main  entrance  stairway,  an  exit  stairway 
has  been  built  21  feet  3  inches  wide,  leading  from  a  passageway  under  the  train  platform, 
passengers  descending  from  the  train  platform  by  two  stairways,  each  4  feet  9  inches  wide. 

From  the  easterly  side  of  the  lobby  a  passageway  21  feet  5  inches  in  width  extends 
to  the  ferry  at  the  foot  of  Market  Street,  descent  to  the  street  level  at  the  ferry  house  being 
made  by  two  8  foot  stairways  at  right  angles  to  the  passageway. 

Owing  to  a  requirement  of  the  franchise  ordinance  the  clear  height  of  the  elevated 
structure  over  the  steam  railroad  tracks  is  20  feet.  As  the  tracks  are  placed  on  the  top 
flanges  of  the  longitudinal  girders,  the  space  beneath  the  train  platform  and  the  track  girders 
has  been  utilized  for  the  lobbies  at  the  extremities  of  the  station,  and  the  designs  provide 
for  the  future  connection  of  the  lobbies  by  underpassages  extending  from  Market  Street 
to  Chestnut  Street,  with  additional  exit  stairways  from  the  train  platform  to  provide  for 
the  rapid  discharge  of  crowds  when  traffic  is  heavy. 

All  of  the  platforms  and  stairways  on  both  stations  are  built  of  Ferro-Inclave  con- 
struction, having  a  total  thickness  of  2§  inches,  the  top  consisting  of  concrete  made  with 
Portland  cement,  sand,  and  trap  rock  grit.  The  bottom  is  plastered  with  mortar,  by  which 
means  all  parts  of  the  sheet  steel  composing  the  Ferro-Inclave  base  are  protected  from  rust. 


On  all  steps  and  at  the  edges  of  the  train  platform,  carborundum  safety  treads 
have  been  placed  to  prevent  slipping.  Along  the  edges  of  all  train  platforms,  owing 
to  the  exposed  situation  of  the  platforms,  sections  of  pipe  railing  have  been  placed, 
arranged  with  openings  to  permit  free  access  of  passengers  to  the  end  and  middle  doors 
of  the  cars. 

The  station  buildings  have  steel  framework,  the  exterior  of  the  sides  being  covered 
with  copper,  including  cornices  and  mouldings.  The  interior  finish  and  furnishings  of 
the  stations  is  of  red  oak  with  natural  finish.  All  roofing,  except  on  the  steep  pitch  of 
the  shelters  over  the  stairways,  is  of  granulated  slag  on  felt  sheathing.  The  roofs  over  the 
stairways  are  covered  with  tin. 

The  station  at  the  terminus  at  South  Street  has  an  island  platform  31  feet  4  inches 
wide,  and  330  feet  long,  to  which  access  is  furnished  by  a  foot-bridge  from  the  westerly 
sidewalk  of  Delaware  Avenue  near  South  Street,  which  is  served  by  two  stairways  each 
5  feet  6  inches  in  width,  and  parallel  to  Delaware  Avenue.  Provision  has  been  made  in 
the  design  for  a  connection  to  the  ferries  at  the  foot  of  South  Street. 

The  style  of  details  is  similar  to  that  of  the  station  between  Chestnut  and  Market 
Streets,  the  tracks  being  laid  upon  the  top  flanges  of  the  girders  and  the  space  below  the 
train  platform  being  utilized  for  a  lobby  and  underpassage.  Passengers  enter  the  station 
by  the  foot  bridge  and  stairway  on  the  west  sidewalk  of  Delaware  Avenue  and  pass  thence 
to  a  lobby  beneath  the  train  platform,  to  which  access  from  the  ferries  will  also  be  made 
in  the  future.  Two  exit  stairways  have  been  built,  one  leading  from  the  train  platform 
north  of  the  waiting  room  to  the  underpassage  to  the  lobby,  and  one  leading  from  the 
train  platform  south  of  the  waiting  room  direct  to  the  floor  of  the  lobby. 

Owing  to  interference  with  an  old  ferry  house,  which  protrudes  within  the  proposed 
widened  line  of  Delaware  Avenue,  the  end  span  of  the  main  structure  has  been  omitted, 
over  which  the  station  structure  is  intended  to  ultimately  extend.  A  temporary  frame 
building  has  been  erected  at  the  southerly  end  of  the  station  for  temporary  toilet  con- 
veniences. The  shelter  of  the  passenger  platform  has  been  erected  over  three  of  the 
spans  included  within  the  station  and  will  be  extended  in  the  future  to  cover  the  remaining 
two  spans  at  the  north  end.  A  signal  tower  has  been  built  at  the  north  end  of  the  plat- 
form to  control  switches  and  the  movement  of  trains. 

The  construction  of  the  waiting  room,  which  includes  the  ticket  offices,  is  similar  to 
that  for  the  station  between  Market  and  Chestnut  Streets. 

Work  was  started  on  the  foundations  at  South  Street  on  July  31,  1906,  and  completed 
in  June,  1907.  The  work  of  setting  the  column  bases,  concreting  about  the  feet  of 
the  columns,  building  the  steps  at  the  feet  of  the  stairways  on  the  sidewalk,  and  other 
miscellaneous  work,  began  on  September  23,  1907,  and  was  completed  in  June,  1908. 


Erection  of  the  main  structure  began  on  September  8,  1907,  with  the  erection  of  the 
columns  on  the  east  side  of  Water  Street  to  support  the  girder  spanning  Arch  Street  at  this 
point.  Erection  proceeded  until  November  5,  1907,  and  was  resumed  on  January  10, 
1908,  then  continuing  without  interruption  until  May  28,  1908,  when  the  last  girder  was 
raised.  Riveting  was  completed  on  June  9,  1908.  The  erection  of  the  main  structure  was 
done  with  a  traveler  having  two  booms  90  feet  long  stayed  to  vertical  steel  posts  with  stiff 
timber  back  legs,  and  mounted  on  a  timber  platform,  the  traveler  being  widened  as  erec- 
tion proceeded  from  Arch  Street  south  to  include  the  widened  structure,  where  the  tracks 
spread  around  the  island  platforms. 

The  erection  of  the  structural  steel  for  the  stations  and  stairways  began  with  the 
canopy  at  Market  Street,  on  March  30,  1908,  and  the  superstructure  of  the  stations  on 
the  structural  frame  work  began  at  Market  Street  July  13,  1908. 

The  principal  items  of  construction  are  as  follows: 

Excavation 10,000  cubic  yards 

Concrete 4,560  cubic  yards 

Piles  in  foundations 2,864  piles 

Reinforcing  rods  for  concrete 100  tons 

Anchor  bolts n  tons 

Structural  steel  work: 

Main  structure 5,912  tons 

Station  steel 199  tons 

6,111  tons 

Pipe  rail  fence 9,162  lineal  feet 


Train  Yards,   Sixty-ninth  Street  Terminal 
Repair  Shops,  Sixty-ninth    Street  Terminal 


Department  Store  "Window,   East  Market   Street   Subway 


ARTHUR  LOEB 

Vice-President  Millard  Construction  Company 


TRACK  CONSTRUCTION:    THIRD   RAIL:    SIGNAL  AND 

TELEPHONE   SYSTEMS 

'HE  Elevated  structure  between  Twenty-ninth  Street  and 
Sixty-third  Street  is  provided  with  a  solid  steel  trough  floor, 
upon  which  is  placed  a  reinforced  concrete  deck  or  covering 
with  a  rough  granolithic  finish.  The  top  surface  of  the 
concrete  is  formed  on  a  3  per  cent,  grade  sloping  from  the 
sides  toward  the  centre,  along  which  line  is  a  drainage  gutter 
with  outlet  pipes  at  each  cross  girder.  The  sides  of  this 
gutter  are  formed  of  concrete  with  "weep"  holes  at  fre- 
quent intervals.  The  gutter  is  covered  with  reinforced 
concrete  slabs  built  in  sections  12  inches  long  so  that  they  may  be  readily  removed  for 
the  purpose  of  cleaning  out  the  gutter.  The  top  of  the  concrete  is  at  such  a  height  that 
it  will  allow  a  minimum  depth  of  5!  inches  of  ballast  under  the  outer  edge  of  the  ties ;  this 
increasing  to  about  8J  inches  at  the  inner  edge.  The  ballast  is  composed  of  first-class 
trap  rock  uniformly  i  inch  size.  It  is  carried  to  the  tops  of  the  ties  throughout,  cover- 
ing completely  the  central  drain. 

The  ties  are  6  inches  by  8  inches  by  8  feet,  sawed  chestnut  and  oak,  and  spaced  22^ 
inches  centre  to  centre,  giving  sixteen  ties  for  each  30  foot  rail.  The  rails  are  in  30  foot 
lengths  and  of  Bessemer  steel,  the  A.  S.  C.  E.  90  pound  section.  They  are  secured  to  the 
ties  by  means  of  clips  and  screw  spikes.  In  order  to  facilitate  the  work  of  placing,  the 
ties  were  all  drilled  to  templet  for  the  screw  spikes  before  being  placed  on  the  structure. 
All  that  was  necessary  to  secure  the  track  in  position  was  to  place  the  clips  and  screw  down 
the  spikes.  These  spikes  were  of  special  design,  5^  inches  long  under  the  head,  |  inch  in 
diameter  at  the  root  of  the  threads  and  i  inch  in  diameter  where  the  spike  passes  through 
the  clip.  Weber  joint  plates  are  used  to  connect  the  rails;  they  are  six-hole  plates  32  inches 
in  length. 

As  an  element  of  safety  an  inside  guard  rail  is  placed  along  each  rail  for  the  entire 
length  of  the  structure,  forming  a  throat  of  4  inches  between  guard  and  running  rails. 
It  is  connected  to  the  running  rail  by  bolts  and  adjustable  chocks  at  intervals  of  about 
six  feet.  This  rail  also  is  secured  to  the  ties  by  screw  spikes  and  the  joints  in  the  guard 
rail  are  laid  to  break  joints  with  the  running  rail.  In  establishing  the  width  of  throat 
at  4  inches,  it  was  thought  advisable  so  to  place  the  guard  rail  that,  if  possible,  the  wheels 
of  the  truck  should  not  be  allowed  to  leave  the  rails  entirely  from  any  tendency  to  derailment. 
That  is,  for  instance,  should  a  broken  flange,  or  other  cause,  tend  to  throw  the  wheels  to 
the  right,  the  back  of  the  flanges  on  the  left  hand  wheel  would  engage  the  guard  rail  before 


the  tread  of  the  left  hand  wheel  had  completely  left  the  running  rail,  and  before  the 
flange  of  the  right  hand  wheel  had  cleared  the  running  rail  on  that  side,  thereby  keeping 
trucks  in  reasonable  alignment  until  the  train  could  be  brought  to  a  standstill.  It  might 
be  added  that  the  top  of  the  separating  chocks  is  of  sufficient  depth  below  head  of  rail 
to  provide  clearance  for  worn  wheels  with  deep  flanges. 

The  third  rail  is  carried  by  wooden  arms  extending  under  the  sidewalk  and  is  entirely 
free  from  the  track  structure.  Part  of  the  track  has  been  in  operation  for  upwards  of 
eighteen  months  and  no  difficulty  has  been  experienced  in  maintaining  the  proper  relation 
between  running  rail  and  third  rail. 

Between  Sixty-third  Street  and  private  right-of-way  west  of  Millbourne  Mills,  the 
ties  are  laid  directly  on  the  chord  members  of  the  trusses,  there  being  no  solid  floor  in  this 
short  section.  The  ties  are  securely  anchored  to  the  steel  work  by  means  of  hook  bolts 
passing  through  the  ties  and  the  running  rail,  and  the  guard  rails  are  secured  to  these 
ties  in  the  same  manner  as  on  the  ballasted  section.  From  Millbourne  Mills  to  the  Ter- 
minal at  Sixty-ninth  Street,  track  is  on  private  right-of-way.  The  subgrade  was  graded 
to  give  a  depth  of  8  inches  for  ballast  under  the  ties.  The  same  kind  of  ties  and  the  same 
construction  is  used  on  this  part  of  the  track  as  on  the  ballasted  portion  of  the  Elevated, 
excepting  that  the  safety  guard  is  omitted,  and  the  third  rail  is  carried  on  long  ties. 

The  switches  and  frogs  of  special  work  are  made  of  manganese  steel;  switches  being 
of  the  split  switch  type  but  of  a  special  design  with  the  points  of  solid  manganese.  The 
economy  in  this  type  of  switch  has  been  fully  demonstrated  during  the  past  eighteen  months 
of  service. 

On  plain  curves,  with  a  radius  of  between  500  and  600  feet,  the  inside  rail  is  provided 
with  a  manganese  steel  working  guard  of  a  section  similar  to  the  safety  guard  used  on 
the  straight  track,  but  heavier.  This  guard  is  set  so  as  to  give  a  throat  of  i|  inches, 
thereby  engaging  the  back  flange  of  the  inside  wheels  against  this  guard  rail,  and  reducing 
the  wear  on  the  outside  running  rail.  On  curves  under  500  feet  in  radius,  both  inside  and 
outside  rails  are  provided  with  a  working  guard  of  this  type;  the  outside  rail,  however, 
being  of  the  rolled  guard  section  while  the  inner  guard  rail  is  of  manganese  steel.  On 
the  reverse  curves  at  Twenty-ninth  and  Market  Streets  there  has  been  placed  an  additional 
tee  rail  guard  inside  of  the  working  guard,  as  an  additional  precaution  against  possible 
accident  from  derailment. 

The  track  work  on  the  third  rail  portion  of  the  Delaware  Avenue  Elevated,  which  ex- 
tends from  Chestnut  to  South  Streets,  is  somewhat  different.  The  structure  in  this  section 
has  an  open  floor,  with  the  ties  laid  directly  on  the  top  chords  of  the  trusses.  As  these  trusses 
are  spaced  8  feet  from  centre  to  centre,  it  was  necessary  to  use  a  somewhat  deeper  tie  in  order 
to  give  the  desired  strength.  The  ties  in  this  section  are  made  of  8  inch  by  10  inch  by  10  feet 


Sixty-ninth   Street   Terminal.      Train    Shed  Above:  Waiting  Room  Below 


Views  in  and  about  tKe  Sixty-ninth  Street  Terminal  Yards 


JAMES  P.  McNICHOL 

Treasurer  Millard  Construction  Company 


first  quality  yellow  pine  and  creosoted.  Before  delivery  these  ties  were  dressed  to  9  inches  in 
the  middle  of  the  tie  and  10  inches  at  the  ends.  This  extra  depth  at  the  end  was  provided  in 
order  to  facilitate  surfacing  the  ties  to  conform  to  the  slight  irregularities  on  the  surface  of 
the  iron  work.  The  ties  are  spaced  the  usual  distance,  that  is,  sixteen  ties  to  a  30  foot  rail, 
and  each  tie  is  secured  to  the  chord  by  means  of  four  f  inch  hook  bolts  passing  through 
the  tie  with  their  lower  end  shaped  to  conform  to  the  under  side  of  the  bulb  angles.  Every 
fifth  tie  is  made  10  feet  6  inches  long,  and  on  these  ties  is  carried  the  third  rail  bracket. 
The  rail  is  the  same  as  used  on  the  Elevated  structure  on  West  Market  Street,  and  is  se- 
cured to  the  ties  in  the  same  manner.  Instead  of  using  the  "Z"  bar  section  of  safety  guard, 
however,  standard  tee  rail  of  the  same  section  as  the  running  rail  has  been  used  for  this 
purpose,  and  in  order  to  secure  the  proper  space  between  the  base  of  rails  for  the  fastenings, 
it  was  necessary  to  increase  the  throat  f  inch,  making  it  4$  inches  instead  of  4  inches. 
This  distance,  however,  is  still  small  enough  to  prevent  complete  derailment  of  the  wheels. 

The  special  work  in  this  section  is  practically  the  same  as  is  used  throughout  the 
entire  Elevated  system.  But  it  might  be  added,  that  all  the  special  work  is  so  designed  that 
all  switches  are  interchangeable ;  that  is,  any  right  hand  switch  of  this  design  can  be 
placed  in  any  right  hand  location  throughout  the  entire  Subway  and  Elevated  system  (with 
the  exception,  of  course,  of  the  unbroken  main-line  emergency  cross-overs),  thus  reducing 
the  number  of  pieces  that  must  be  carried  for  emergency  purposes. 

With  the  exception  of  the  Delaware  Avenue  Elevated  and  the  short  section  of  private 
right-of-way  at  the  western  end,  no  joints  in  the  running  rail  are  bonded  for  return 
circuit.  In  the  Subway  the  anchoring  channels  are  bonded  and  the  centre  of  each  rail 
connected  to  these  channels.  On  the  Elevated  structure,  the  steel  work  of  the  structure 
itself  is  bonded,  and  the  centre  of  the  running  rail  bonded  to  the  steel  work.  The  rail  of 
the  running  track,  which  is  used  for  signaling  purposes,  is,  however,  connected  with  light 
bond  wires  for  this  purpose. 

In  the  construction  of  the  Subway  roadbed,  the  use  of  concrete  for  the  purpose  may 
be  said  to  have  been  established.  There  is  not  a  yard  of  ballast  from  one  end  of  the  Subway 
to  the  other. 

Concrete  was  first  used  tentatively  for  fifteen  months  on  Subway  tracks  carrying 
single  heavy  eight  wheel  two  truck  cars  on  about  a  three  minute  headway.  Following 
this  the  same  construction  was  adopted  on  about  7,000  feet  of  track  carrying  trains  of  three 
or  four  steel-framed  cars  operating  on  a  four  minute  headway.  The  complete  success  of 
this  second  trial,  extending  over  a  year  and  more  of  actual  service,  left  no  doubt  as  to  its 
adaptability  for  the  service.  The  principal  point  of  difference  between  this  construction 
and  all  others  lies  in  the  fact  that  the  ties  rest  directly  on  the  concrete  and  not  on  the 
channels  which  form  the  anchors.  The  cost  of  maintenance  was  practically  nothing, 


beyond  the  wages  of  two  track  walkers,  one  night  and  one  day,  part  of  whose  time  was 
spent  in  sweeping  up  accumulations  of  dust,  etc. 

The  structure  for  each  track  consists  of  four  12  inch  20 \  pound  channels,  arranged 
in  pairs,  one  pair  under  each  rail.  The  channels  are  placed  back  to  back  in  pairs,  and 
are  held  15  inches  apart  by  separators,  which  consist  of  4  inch  sections  of  15  inch  channels, 
riveted  at  intervals  to  the  webs  of  the  12  inch  channels.  Concrete  is  then  placed  inside 
each  pair  and  leveled  up  J  inch  above  the  upper  surface  of  the  channels,  to  form  a  concrete 
bearing  surface  for  the  ties;  and  the  spaces  between  the  rails  and  outside  them  is  also  filled 
up  with  concrete. 

Laying  the  tracks  proceeded  as  follows:  The  12  inch  channels  were  provided  in  30 
foot  lengths,  the  webs  drilled  with  the  necessary  holes  for  the  rivets  of  the  separater  channels ; 
and  the  upper  flanges  drilled  with  holes  for  the  tie  bolts,  two  holes  for  each  tie,  so  spaced 
as  to  bolt  each  tie  by  diagonally  opposite  corners.  Having  been  assembled  in  pairs,  the 
channels  were  deposited  in  the  Subway,  put  into  approximate  place  and  coupled  up. 

Rail  in  6o-foot  lengths  had  already  been  distributed.  The  rail  is  go-pound,  A.  S.  C.  E. 
type.  Manganese  steel  is  used  on  curves. 

The  channels  were  then  assembled  by  temporary  ties,  which  were  long  enough  to  hold 
both  pairs  of  channels,  and  had  been  previously  drilled  to  templet  with  holes  for  the  bolts 
to  the  channels  and  for  the  screw  spikes  to  the  rails.  This  ensures  the  proper  relation 
between  the  channel,  the  tie,  and  the  rail. 

These  temporary  ties  were  spaced  7 \  feet  apart  and  were  bolted  to  the  channels.  The 
rails  are  then  placed  and  spiked  to  the  ties,  and  the  assembled  group  of  channels,  ties,  and 
rails  is  wedged  into  true  line  and  surface. 

A  1:3:6  concrete  was  then  filled  into  the  15  inch  space  between  each  pair  of  channels, 
and  brought  up  to  within  3  inches  of  the  finished  top  surface.  This  was  allowed  to  set 
long  enough  to  hold  the  channels  securely  against  possible  movement,  when  the  rails  and 
temporary  ties  were  removed.  The  rails  were  laid  aside  until  wanted  for  permanent 
placement,  while  the  ties  were  moved  ahead  to  another  section. 

The  top  concrete  surface  is  a  i :  2 : 4  mixture  of  cement,  sand,  and  trap  rock  grit,  placed 
before  the  first  layer  has  entirely  set.  It  is  brought  to  a  level  J  inch  above  the  top  surface 
of  the  channels,  the  wooden  surfacing  tools  being  guided  by  J  inch  metal  strips  clamped 
to  the  top  of  the  channels. 

The  space  between  and  outside  the  tracks  was  concreted.  The  surface  slopes  slightly 
away  from  the  tracks  in  each  direction,  being  z\  inches  below  the  bottom  of  the  ties  at 
the  channels. 

Permanent  ties  were  bolted  into  position  after  the  concrete  was  thoroughly  hardened. 
The  ties  are  6  inches  by  10  inches  by  2  feet,  surfaced  to  5$  inches  exactly.  They  were  spaced 


2  feet  centre  to  centre,  and  were  laid  directly  on  the  concrete.  Two  bolt  holes  were  drilled 
in  each  tie  with  gang  drills,  in  diagonally  opposite  corners.  Bolts  are  f  inch  diameter,  pass- 
ing through  the  ties  and  the  upper  flanges  of  the  channels.  They  are  inserted  head  up  and 
are  fastened  by  a  cast  iron  nut  that  conforms  to  the  under  surface  of  the  flange. 

The  space  about  the  upper  flanges  of  the  channels  and  the  cast  iron  nuts  was  then 
filled  up  with  cement  mortar.  In  the  finished  roadbed  only  the  upper  surface  of  the 
channels  shows. 

Holes  for  the  rail  spikes  were  drilled  in  the  ties  by  pneumatic  drills  driven  by  portable 
compressors,  or  by  air  from  the  signal  system,  which  had  already  been  placed.  The  spike 
does  not  bear  directly  on  the  rail  base,  but  on  a  cast  iron  clip,  which  gives  a  better  bearing 
and  prevents  the  base  of  the  rail  from  cutting  the  spike. 

The  construction  on  the  curves  is  similar,  except  that  the  channels  are  bent  to  the 
proper  radii,  and  the  holes  are  drilled  so  as  to  put  the  ties  in  a  radial  position.  Needed 
super-elevation  is  taken  care  of  in  placing  the  channels,  obviating  the  necessity  for  wedge- 
shaped  ties. 

The  trials  made  of  this  construction  indicated,  as  shown  above,  that  absolute  perma- 
nence had  been  secured.  The  rails  and  ties,  on  which  all  the  wear  comes,  are  readily 
replaced,  without  interfering  with  traffic.  But  the  very  indestructibility  of  the  foundation 
reduces  wear,  and  makes  negligible  the  maintenance  expense  due  to  faults  of  lining  and 
surfacing.  The  raDs  are  so  securely  anchored  to  their  foundations  that  creeping  and  vibra- 
tion are  lessened,  joints  keep  in  better  condition,  and  rail  corrugations  are  minimized. 
The  foundation  being  homogeneous,  each  tie  takes  its  full  share  of  the  load,  which  is  much 
more  evenly  distributed  than  with  any  other  construction.  Perfect  cleanliness  is  easily 
maintained,  as  the  whole  Subway  can  be  flushed  out  if  necessary,  water  draining  off  rapidly. 

Electrically,  also,  the  Subway-Elevated  tracks  are  unique.  Early  in  the  construction 
of  the  road  it  was  decided  to  avoid,  if  possible,  the  bonding  of  rail  joints,  on  account  of 
the  difficulty  in  maintaining  such  bonding.  By  utilizing  the  channels  under  the  Subway 
track  and  the  metal  of  the  Elevated  structure  this  was  easily  accomplished. 

In  the  Subway  the  channels  were  bonded  with  soldered  bonds,  having  a  total  cross- 
section  of  4,000,000  circ.  mils.  These  channels  gave  a  total  cross-section  2\  times  that  of 
the  90  pound  rail.  Each  rail  length  was  bonded  to  this  supplemental  return  with  a  300,000 
circ.  mil  cable  bond  compressed  into  the  base  of  the  rail  by  means  of  a  hydraulic  tool,  the 
hole  being  punched  by  the  same  means.  Four  2,250,000  circ.  mil  cables  were  extended 
from  the  Sansom  Street  Substation  to  the  Subway  and  tapped  into  the  channel  system 
at  Seventh  and  Market  Streets. 

On  the  Elevated  structure  the  longitudinal  girders  were  bonded  with  compressed 
terminal  bonds,  having  a  total  cross-section  of  4,000,000  circ.  mils.  Each  rail  length  on 


the  return  rail  was  connected  to  the  structure  by  a  300,000  circ.  mil  cable  bond,  compressed 
into  the  base  of  the  rail  as  in  the  Subway.  Connections  were  made  to  the  Elevated  struc- 
ture at  the  Thirty-third  and  Market  Streets  Power  House  and  at  the  Allison  and  Market 
Streets  Substation. 

A  bull-head  rail  is  used,  hung  on  porcelain  insulators  and  giving  contact  to  the  shoe 
from  the  under  surface. 

The  third  rail  is  hung  entirely  independent  of  the  track  structure  by  either  of  two 
methods,  cutting  down  vibration  to  a  minimum  and  preventing  the  breaking  of  porcelain 
insulators.  In  the  East  Section  of  the  Subway  the  insulators  are  hung  from  a  cast  iron 
bracket  bolted  to  a  support  tie  and  resting  on  the  same  concrete  bed  as  the  track  tie.  But 
the  support  tie  is  surfaced  off  a  trifle  thinner  than  the  track  tie  so  that  it  does  not  touch 
the  running  rail.  On  the  Elevated  and  the  West  Section  of  the  Subway  the  insulators  are 
hung  from  malleable  iron  castings  carried  on  wooden  cross-arms  which  are  bolted  to  the 
Elevated  structure  or  to  the  columns  in  the  Subway. 

Protective  coverings  of  vulcanized  fiber  are  used  in  the  East  Section.  In  the  West 
Section  and  the  Elevated  a  three-piece  wooden  covering  is  used. 

The  under  surface  of  the  third  rail  is  6  inches  above  the  head  of  the  running  rail, 
and  its  centre  line  is  27  inches  outside  the  gauge  line  of  the  track. 

The  third  rail  is  bonded  at  each  joint  with  two  500,000  circ.  mil  compressed  termi- 
nal bonds,  a  hydraulic  tool  being  used  to  upset  the  terminals.  The  third  rail  feeders  are 
of  2,000,000  circ.  mil  cross-section.  These  feeders  are  brought  from  the  substation  to  a 
cast  iron  switch  box,  near  the  point  where  they  are  to  tap  into  the  rail.  A  1,500,000  circ. 
mil  cable  is  used  from  the  switch  box  to  the  rail  itself.  All  of  these  boxes  are  placed  in  a 
convenient  place,  so  that  a  cable  can  be  cut  out  with  the  least  possible  delay  if  neces- 
sary. The  sectional  breaks  are  jumped  by  means  of  1,500,000  circ.  mil  cables  through 
one  of  these  switch  boxes. 

On  the  East  Section  and  the  City  Hall  loop  a  three-quarter  minute  headway  can  be 
maintained.  The  signal  system  on  the  Market  Street  Elevated  and  Subway  is  of  the 
electro-pneumatic  type.  On  the  section  west  of  the  City  Hall  the  signals  are  arranged 
for  minimum  headway  of  one  and  one-half  minutes. 

There  is  no  overlap  on  the  East  Section,  although  similar  results  are  accomplished 
by  placing  the  setting  point  of  each  signal  beyond  the  signal  itself  by  a  distance  equal  to 
the  braking  distance  of  a  train  with  an  emergency  application  of  the  brakes.  On  the 
Western  Section  a  one  block  overlap  is  used,  except  at  the  approaches  to  the  stations,  where 
the  overlap  is  removed  by  means  of  a  cut  section.  This  allows  a  train  to  follow  within 
one  block  of  a  station  while  the  preceding  train  is  standing  in  the  station.  As  there  are 
no  express  trains  the  distant  blade  is  omitted  on  the  signal  approaching  each  station. 


On  the  Elevated  an  iron  pole  semaphore  signal  is  used,  the  bottom  blade  being  15 
feet  above  the  base.  In  the  Subway  an  electric  light  signal  is  used,  having  no  moving 
parts,  the  lamps  being  lit  and  turned  out  by  means  of  a  direct  current  relay.  Electro- 
pneumatic  train  stops  are  used  throughout  the  entire  line.  While  the  signals  are  normal 
clear  the  stops  are  normal  danger. 

The  signals  are  operated  primarily  from  a  closed  track  circuit,  which  is  energized 
by  alternating  current  furnished  from  transformers  along  the  line.  These  transformers 
have  a  primary  winding  for  1,100  volts,  and  two  secondary  windings,  one  to  supply  the  track 
circuit  at  10  volts  and  another  to  supply  the  current  for  lighting  the  signals  at  55  volts. 
The  return  circuit  is  through  one  of  the  running  rails,  which  is  divided  into  blocks  for  the 
signal  system.  The  10  volt  alternating  current  is  fed  into  one  end  of  the  block  through 
a  cast  iron  grid  resistance,  which  can  be  adjusted  to  suit  the  local  conditions  of  the  block 
it  is  to  feed.  An  alternating  current  relay  is  bridged  across  the  two  rails  of  the  track  at 
the  opposite  end  of  the  block  from  the  track  feed.  This  relay  will  respond  only  to  alter- 
nating current.  Its  windings,  however,  would  be  subject  to  the  heating  effects  of  return 
direct  current  were  it  not  for  a  low  resistance  impedance  coil  which  is  bridged  across  the 
terminals  of  the  alternating  current  relay  and  shunts  out  the  direct  current  from  the  relay, 
at  the  same  time  offering  enough  impedance  to  prevent  any  appreciable  shunting  of  the 
alternating  current. 

A  pair  of  battery  mains  at  14  volts  is  extended  the  entire  length  of  the  line.  It  is  fed 
by  six  sets  of  storage  cells  which  are  kept  charged  from  the  third  rail.  This  battery  cur- 
rent is  used  in  actuating  all  magnetic  valves  on  the  pneumatic  movements  and  also  for 
actuating  the  direct  current  relays  to  light  the  Subway  signals. 

The  operation  of  the  block  system  may  be  briefly  described  as  follows:  Alternating 
current  is  fed  into  the  leaving  end  of  a  block  and  is  taken  from  the  entering  end  of  the 
block  to  an  alternating  current  relay.  When  a  train  enters  the  block  the  presence  of  an 
axle  between  the  rails  of  the  track  shunts  the  alternating  current  relay,  de-energizing  it  and 
breaking  its  secondary  contact. 

The  secondary  contact  circuit  is  from  the  14  volt  battery  mains  through  the  magnetic 
valves  on  the  cylinders  of  the  signal  mechanism.  The  breaking  of  this  contact  de-ener- 
gizes the  magnet  valve,  allowing  the  air  pressure  in  the  cylinder  to  exhaust.  A  counter- 
weight on  the  signal  blade  then  draws  the  blade  to  the  danger  position  by  the  action  of 
gravity.  The  movement  of  this  blade  is  repeated  to  the  distant  blade  through  a  wire  ex- 
tending back  one  block. 

As  a  train  leaves  the  block  the  shunting  action  of  the  axle  is  removed.  The  alternat- 
ing current  relay  is  again  picked  up,  closing  its  secondary  circuit ;  this  in  turn  energizes  the 
magnet  valve,  applying  air  to  the  cylinder,  which  draws  the  blade  to  the  clear  position 


against  the  action  of  the  counterweight.  It  is  apparent  that  the  breaking  of  any  wire  or 
the  failure  of  air  pressure  will  cause  the  signal  to  fall  to  the  danger  position.  The  only 
possible  causes  for  a  clear  failure  are  a  defective  alternating  current  relay,  or  foreign  cur- 
rent applied  directly  to  the  magnet  valve  circuit. 

Air  pressure  is  supplied  at  90  pounds  to  the  square  inch,  through  a  2  inch  galvanized 
iron  pipe  which  extends  the  entire  length  of  the  line.  This  pipe  is  supplied  from  three 
sources.  At  the  Terminal  there  are  two  steam  driven  air  compressors;  at  Thirty-third 
and  Market  Streets  there  are  two  steam  driven  compressors,  and  at  Front  and  Arch  Streets 
there  are  two  compressors  driven  by  600  volt  direct  current  electric  motors.  Each  of 
these  compressors  has  a  capacity  of  250  cubic  feet  of  free  air  per  minute.  It  will  be  noted 
that  each  compressor  station  is  provided  with  duplicate  sets,  in  order  to  provide  against 
failure  of  any  one  machine.  Under  normal  working  conditions  one  of  these  compressors 
will  supply  enough  air  for  all  signals,  train  stops,  and  switches,  the  excess  capacity  being 
provided  to  take  care  of  any  drain  on  the  line  which  might  be  caused  by  leaks  or  by  the 
use  of  pneumatic  tools  in  track  construction  or  structural  steel  work.  It  might  be  added 
that  the  use  of  this  compressed  air  has  been  found  a  great  convenience  as  well  as  a  saving 
of  time  and  money  in  the  operation  of  these  pneumatic  tools. 

All  switches  on  this  road  are  operated  from  electro-pneumatic  interlocking  plants. 
These  are  located  at  the  terminals,  also  at  the  cross-overs  at  Fifty-second,  Twenty-ninth, 
Fifteenth,  Eighth  and  Second  Streets.  There  are  also  two  interlocking  plants  at  the  City 
Hall  to  control  the  switches  at  that  point.  Alternating  current  bar  track  circuits  are  used 
at  all  switches,  no  mechanical  detector  bars  being  used. 

The  Philadelphia  Rapid  Transit  Company  operates  a  telephone  system  which  cen- 
tralizes at  its  office  building  at  Eighth  and  Dauphin  Streets.  All  the  properties  of  the 
Company  are  connected  by  this  exchange  by  its  own  underground  telephone  wires.  In 
view  of  the  individual  character  of  the  Subway  and  Elevated  system  it  was  decided  to 
place  a  branch  exchange  at  the  Sixty-ninth  Street  Terminal,  connecting  it  to  Eighth  and 
Dauphin  Streets  by  trunks,  and  having  all  the  telephones  connected  with  the  Elevated 
and  Subway  system  operate  from  the  branch  exchange  at  the  Terminal.  A  no  pair 
lead  covered  and  paper  insulated  cable  was  installed  from  the  Sixty-ninth  Street  Terminal 
to  Delaware  Avenue.  Another  no  pair  cable  was  installed  from  Twelfth  and  Market 
Streets  to  Thirteenth  and  Mount  Vernon  Streets,  where  connection  is  made  with  other 
cables  leading  to  the  Eighth  and  Dauphin  Streets  exchange.  At  Twelfth  and  Market 
Streets  a  large  junction  box  is  installed  where  cross  connections  can  be  made  between  any 
pairs  in  these  cables,  leading  north,  east,  and  west.  Each  station  along  the  line  is  provided 
with  a  telephone  in  each  ticket  booth.  There  are  also  a  number  of  telephones  distributed 
along  the  line  in  cast  iron  boxes  for  the  use  of  track  walkers,  signal  men  and  inspectors. 


CHARLES  Q.  MAcDONOUGH 

Secretary  Millard  Construction  Company 


- 

to 

'•?  ••*' 


Department  Store  ^^indows.   East  Market  Street  Subway 


Department  Store  Entrance,   East  Market  Street   Subway 
Cross-over  to   Sub-level   Station.  TKirteentK  Street 


ROLLING    STOCK    AND    EQUIPMENT 


HE  Elevated-Subway  service  requires  from  eighty  to  one 
hundred  cars.  At  the  slack  hours  fourteen  trains  of  two  cars 
each  are  in  use;  and  at  the  rush  hours  fourteen  trains  of  five 
cars  each.  The  number  of  trains  per  hour  and  of  cars  per 
train  are  to  be  increased  as  traffic  warrants  it. 

Before  deciding  upon  the  type  of  cars  a  thorough  investi- 
gation was  made  of  the  different  designs  in  use  on  other 
rapid  transit  systems,  both  in  this  country  and  abroad.  A 
steel-framed  car  of  the  design  developed  and  used  by  the 
Boston  Elevated  Railroad  Company  appeared  the  best  to  answer  Philadelphia  conditions, 
and  with  some  slight  modifications  was  adopted. 

These  cars  are  of  substantially  all  steel  construction, — woodwork  being  used  only  for 
the  interior  finish,  which  is  of  mahogany.  The  entire  underframe  is  of  steel,  and  the  floor 
is  a  monolithic  composition  laid  on  corrugated  sheets.  Seats  are  of  cane.  They  run 
lengthwise  the  side  of  the  car,  from  each  corner  toward  the  central  door,  which  is  left  free 
for  the  exit  of  passengers.  The  seating  capacity  is  forty-four. 

In  order  to  avoid  accidents  through  carelessness  in  putting  an  arm  or  head  out  of  the 
window,  the  windows  are  arranged  to  lower  from  the  top  only  several  inches,  giving  ample 
ventilation  while  guarding  the  lower  part  of  the  opening.  There  is  also  a  row  of  ventil- 
ators along  the  clerestory  on  each  side.  Passengers  enter  through  the  end  doors,  and 
leave  through  the  centre  doors,  all  of  which  are  operated  by  compressed  air  controlled 
by  the  trainmen  from  the  ends  of  the  car.  Lighting  is  done  by  16  candle-power  lamps  in 
the  centre  line  of  the  ceiling  and  along  the  sides. 

On  account  of  the  requirements  of  the  ordinance,  that  stations  shall  average  not  more 
than  one-half  mile  apart,  it  was  not  deemed  feasible  to  attempt  a  greater  schedule  speed 
than  fifteen  to  sixteen  miles  per  hour,  and  even  this  assumption  was  based  on  station  stops 
not  exceeding  twenty  seconds  each.  Furthermore,  heavy  grades  seemed  to  indicate 
that  the  best  results  would  be  obtained  by  making  each  car  a  motor  car,  and  accord- 
ingly on  one  truck  of  each  car  are  mounted  two  General  Electric  No.  66  motors,  rated 
at  125  horse-power  each.  The  armature  of  these  motors  carries  a  17  tooth  pinion.  The 
axle  gear  has  61  teeth,  z\  inch  pitch.  The  frames  of  both  the  motor  and  trailer  trucks  are 
interchangeable,  having  a  uniform  wheel  base  of  6  feet  7  inches. 

General  Electric-Sprague  multiple  unit  system  of  control  is  used  on  all  the  cars.  The 
whole  train  is  controlled  by  the  motorman  on  the  front  platform  of  the  head  car.  The 
controller  is  so  arranged  that  it  automatically  returns  to  its  dead  point  should  he  take  his 


hand  from  the  handle.  No  train  cable  is  used  on  either  power  or  lighting  circuits.  The 
gaps  in  the  third  rail  are  consequently  short  and  are  not  bridged  by  the  train. 

The  Westinghouse  Traction  air  brakes  are  equipped  with  electric  control  and  gradual 
release.  The  air  pumps  are  motor  operated  and  supply  air  for  both  the  brakes  and  the 
operation  of  the  doors. 

Heavy  pattern  Van  Dorn  car  couplings  with  Westinghouse  automatic  couplers  for 
the  air  pipes  are  used. 

The  overall  height  of  the  car  (top  of  rail  to  top  of  car  roof)  was  originally  designed  to 
be  12  feet  5  inches,  but  modifications  in  the  trucks  have  since  increased  this  to  13  feet, 
giving  approximately  one  foot  clearance  between  the  roof  of  the  car  and  the  roof  of  the 
Subway. 

MOTOR  TRUCKS  TRAILER  TRUCKS 

Gauge  of  track 5  feet  z\  inches  5  feet  2\  inches 

Wheel  base 6  feet  7  inches  6  feet  7  inches 

Weight  on  centre  plate  with  loaded  car 20,000  pounds  20,000  pounds 

Centre  bearings ... Symington  ball  Symington  ball 

Side  bearings Symington  ball  Symington  ball 

Wheels  (solid  rolled  steel) 34  inches  34  inches 

Axles — centre  diameter 6  inches  6  inches 

Axles — gear  seat 6J  inches 

Axles — wheel  seat 6$  inches  6J  inches 

Journals 5  inches  by  9  inches  5   inches  by  9   inches 

Journal  boxes Symington  Symington 

Weight  of  trucks 2 1,500 pounds  (with motors)  12,750  pounds 

Weight  of  car  body  complete 34,3oo  pounds 


LIGHTING  OF  THE  SUBWAY-ELEVATED   SYSTEM:    DRAINAGE 

'HE  daytime  lighting  of  the  Subway  stations  is  much  sim- 
plified by  the  extensive  use  of  vault  lights  in  the  sidewalks. 
Heavy  glass  lights  are  used,  70,000  being  used  in  the  Eighth 
Street  station  alone. 

The  artificial  lighting  throughout  the  Subway-Elevated 
system  is  done  by  16  candle-power  incandescent  lamps. 

From  the  portal  at  the  Delaware  River  to  the  east  side 
of  City  Hall,  the  Subway  tunnel  has  a  light  every  60  feet 
on  each  side,  the  lights  on  one  side  being  placed  midway 
between  those  on  the  other;  this  gives  a  light  for  every  30  lineal  feet,  or  780  square  feet  of 
horizontal  surface  per  lamp.  Around  the  City  Hall  loop  the  lights  are  only  20  feet  apart, 
but  the  tunnel  is  wider,  so  that  each  light  has  to  illuminate  808  square  feet.  West  of  the 
City  Hall  the  tunnel  is  four  tracks  wide  and  the  lights  are  placed  25  feet  apart,  making 
about  1,150  square  feet  per  light. 

The  station  platforms  are  supplied  with  light  on  the  basis  of  32  to  38  square  feet  per 
lamp. 

There  are  two  methods  of  lighting  used — by  direct  current  at  550  volts  for  emer- 
gency service,  and  25  cycle  alternating  current  for  regular  service.  Taps  are  made  from  the 
alternating  current  lighting  cable  at  each  station  to  a  transformer  placed  in  the  transformer 
room  at  the  western  end  of  the  south  platform.  The  secondary  of  this  transformer  is  to 
furnish  power  at  550  volts,  and  to  be  provided  with  four  intermediate  taps,  making  five 
circuits  of  no  volts  each.  These  circuits  are  connected  to  the  fuse  panel  at  each  trans- 
former, and  a  six  conductor  cable  runs  from  here  to  each  of  the  panel  boards. 

The  panel  boards  have  at  the  middle  of  the  top  a  6-pole  double  throw  switch,  the  nor- 
mal position  of  which  would  be  up,  connecting  the  six  lines  of  the  alternating  current 
circuit  to  the  six  bus  bars  of  the  panel  board.  The  two  lower  clips  of  the  6-pole  switch 
are  connected  to  a  direct  current  lighting  cable  and  to  the  ground  respectively.  On  either 
side  of  the  6-pole  switch  is  a  single  pole  double  throw  switch.  As  there  are  four  panel 
boards  in  each  station  there  would  be  eight  of  these  switches,  and  they  are  used  to  supply 
current  to  the  tunnel  lights,  ticket  offices,  heaters,  emergency  lights,  store  entrances,  etc. 
At  the  bottom  of  each  panel  board  are  two  sets  of  five  switches,  connected  to  the  six 
bus  bars.  Each  of  these  switches  controls  a  circuit  of  ten  lights  wired  in  multiple.  When 
the  power  for  the  lights  is  being  taken  from  the  alternating  current  circuit,  with  the  6-pole 
switch  up,  any  one  of  the  ten  small  switches  may  be  closed,  the  same  as  on  any  no  volt 
service.  When  the  alternating  current  cable  is  out  of  service,  the  6-pole  switch  is  thrown 


down  and  all  the  ten  switches  may  be  closed,  lighting  all  the  lights,  or  any  five  switches 
may  be  closed  so  long  as  no  two  are  opposite.  The  lamps  would  then  be  connected  in 
series  multiple. 

The  major  portion  of  the  lights  at  the  stations  are  in  clusters  of  five,  and  wired  in 
multiple,  so  that  two  clusters  make  the  necessary  ten  lights  for  one  alternating  current 
circuit.  Every  fourth  cluster  is  wired  in  series  and  connects  to  the  550  volt  direct  current 
cable,  and  forms  part  of  the  emergency  lighting. 

There  are  so  many  lights  in  the  Subway,  and  they  cover  so  great  an  area  for 
no  volt  service,  that  this  system  was  devised.  It  gives  no  volt  service  on  a  high  tension 
alternating  current  supply,  through  a  step-down  transformer  whose  secondary  is  550  volts 
with  no  volt  taps;  and  operates  under  emergency  conditions  on  a  550  volt  direct  current 
supply. 

All  the  wires  in  the  stations  are  installed  in  loricated  conduit,  which  is  laid  in  the 
cement  work.  The  lighting  wires  through  the  tunnels  are  held  on  heavy  porcelain 
insulators  attached  to  maple  cross-arms.  The  maple  cross-arms  are  bolted  into  a 
cast  iron  block,  which  is  fastened  to  the  side  wall  of  the  tunnel  by  lag  screws  and  lead 
plugs. 

The  wiring  of  all  the  Elevated  stations  is  laid  out  on  the  same  general  plan.  The 
lights  on  each  platform  are  controlled  from  a  panel  board  in  the  ticket  booth.  At  the 
bottom  of  the  panel  board  is  a  double  throw  switch,  the  hinge  point  of  which  connects 
to  the  distributing  bus  bar  of  the  panel  board.  The  clip  points  connect  to  the  lighting 
cable  and  third  rail  respectively  through  a  service  box  placed  under  the  floor  of  the 
platform  at  the  nearest  expansion  joint  to  the  station.  In  case  of  trouble  on  the  lighting 
cable,  this  switch  can  be  thrown  over  and  all  the  lights  in  the  station  supplied  from  the 
third  rail. 

All  the  lights  are  connected  five  in  series  on  a  550  volt  circuit,  so  that  five  lamps  go 
out  if  one  lamp  in  the  circuit  burns  out.  To  prevent  the  stairs  from  being  in  darkness 
should  a  circuit  of  lights  burn  out,  the  lights  down  the  stairways  are  all  double  circuited. 
The  waiting  rooms  are  lighted  by  three  circuits  of  lights. 

The  platforms  are  10  feet  wide,  with  a  row  of  lights  front  and  back.  The  two  rows 
are  about  6  feet  apart,  with  a  lamp  every  16  feet,  which  figures  about  one  lamp  for  every 
80  square  feet  of  platform.  In  the  waiting  rooms  there  is  one  lamp  for  every  22  square 
feet  of  floor  space,  and  the  toilet  rooms  have  about  the  same. 

All  the  electric  heaters  in  the  Elevated  stations  are  of  3  ampere  capacity,  connected 
two  in  series  on  550  volts,  mounted  on  a  slate  base  and  protected  by  a  wrought  iron  guard. 
There  is  one  unit  installed  in  each  toilet  room  and  ticket  booth,  and  three  units  in  each 
waiting  room.  This  has  been  found  to  give  very  satisfactory  heating,  and  is  about  7.3 


S.  M.  SWAAB 

Engineer  in  CLarge  oi  Construction,  Millard   Construction   Company 


watts  per  cubic  foot  for  the  ticket  offices,  3.8  watts  per  cubic  foot  for  the  toilet  rooms, 
and  2.7  watts  per  cubic  foot  for  the  waiting  rooms. 

Inasmuch  as  it  was  decided  to  put  the  switchboards  in  the  ticket  booths,  leaving  the 
control  of  the  various  circuits  to  the  ticket  seller,  a  special  panel  board  was  devised  so  as 
to  reduce  to  a  minimum  the  liability  of  danger  in  operating  the  switches. 

The  switches  are  mounted  on  a  marble  base  9  feet  by  2  feet  6  inches,  and  are  Perkins 
500  volt  indicating  snap  switches.  The  base  is  supported  2  inches  in  front  of  a  ij  inch 
slate  slab,  on  which  are  mounted  the  600  volt  National  Standard  Type  "B"  fuses.  The 
hinge  clip  of  the  double  throw  switch,  above  referred  to,  connects  to  the  main  distributing 
bar  through  a  600  volt  Type  "E"  fuse.  All  the  switches  are  connected  to  the  main  bar, 
and  from  here  they  connect  to  the  circuit  fuses.  The  panel  board  door  has  an  opening  in 
the  centre,  so  that  when  closed  it  covers  all  the  fuses  and  live  points  of  the  circuits,  leaving 
exposed  the  marble  base  with  the  switches  mounted  thereon.  To  control  any  circuit  it 
is  only  necessary  to  turn  the  handle  of  the  snap  switch.  There  is  no  occasion  for  opening 
the  panel  board  doors,  except  by  an  experienced  wireman  in  case  of  trouble  with  the 
circuits. 

The  drainage  water  in  the  Subway  is  collected  at  four  different  points.  From  the 
west  portal  at  the  Schuylkill  River  the  drainage  is  carried  in  two  12  inch  terra  cotta  pipes 
to  a  sump  well  at  Twenty-second  Street,  and  from  Sixteenth  Street  west  to  the  same  well 
through  two  12  inch  terra  cotta  pipes. 

From  Sixteenth  Street  eastward  the  drainage  water  is  carried  to  a  sump  at  Fifteenth 
Street,  and  from  the  south  side  of  City  Hall  westward  to  the  same  sump. 

The  north  side  of  City  Hall  drains  eastward  to  a  sump  at  Juniper  Street,  and  from 
Thirteenth  Street  the  water  drains  westward  to  the  same  sump. 

From  Thirteenth  Street  the  water  drains  eastward  to  a  sump  well  at  Fifth  Street 
through  a  12  inch  terra  cotta  pipe  to  Eleventh  Street;  from  here  through  a  15  inch  terra 
cotta  pipe  under  the  north  track.  From  the  east  portal  the  drainage  is  carried  westward 
to  the  sump  at  Fifth  Street. 

There  is  placed  between  the  rails  of  the  express  track  a  sump  2  feet  wide  and  3  feet 
long  every  50  feet.  These  sumps  connect  to  the  terra  cotta  pipes  before  referred  to.  Where 
the  tracks  are  on  a  grade,  it  was  not  necessary  to  make  any  special  provision  for  drainage, 
but  where  the  tracks  are  on  a  level,  the  cement  finish  is  given  a  slope  of  3  inches  in  100  feet 
between  the  sumps. 

Along  the  outside  of  the  tracks  there  are  small  floor  drains  and  3  inch  terra  cotta  pipes, 
which  connect  to  the  sumps  to  take  care  of  the  drainage  water  here. 

The  sump  well  at  Twenty-second  Street  is  n  feet  3  inches  wide  by  9  feet  6  inches  long, 
and  has  a  capacity  of  about  5,800  gallons  of  water.  The  two  centrifugal  pumps  are  held 


by  supports  fastened  to  the  bottom  of  the  well.  The  motors  are  placed  on  the  floor  about 
6  feet  8  inches  above  the  bottom  of  the  well. 

There  is  very  little  drainage  water  at  Fifteenth  Street,  and  two  sewage  ejectors  were 
installed  to  take  care  of  this,  as  well  as  the  toilet  rooms.  These  sewage  ejectors  are  in 
duplicate,  each  having  a  capacity  of  200  gallons  per  minute.  They  operate  by  compressed 
air  taken  from  the  air  line  which  supplies  the  air  used  for  operating  the  signals. 

At  Thirteenth  Street  the  pumps  are  placed  in  a  dry  well  alongside  the  sump  well, 
and  the  water  is  drawn  from  the  wet  well  into  the  pumps  through  two  6  inch  pipes  passing 
through  the  intervening  wall.  The  motors  are  placed  on  the  level  of  the  express  platform, 
the  shafts  that  connect  to  the  pumps  extending  through  the  local  platform  and  being 
encased  in  a  sheet  iron  guard.  The  wet  well,  exclusive  of  the  drains  and  sumps,  has  a 
capacity  of  7,500  gallons  of  water. 

The  city  sewer  at  the  Fifth  Street  Station  is  above  the  level  of  the  platform,  so  there 
were  installed  two  Ansonia  sewage  ejectors  to  discharge  the  toilet  room  drainage  into  the 
sewer.  Each  has  a  capacity  of  150  gallons  per  minute.  The  ejectors  are  operated  by 
compressed  air  taken  from  the  signal  air  line,  and  are  placed  in  a  pit  next  to  the  sump  well 
at  the  east  end  of  the  Fifth  Street  Station. 

The  two  pumps  for  drainage  at  this  place  are  placed  in  a  dry  well,  and  take  the  water 
from  the  wet  well  through  two  6  inch  cast  iron  pipes  built  in  the  wall  of  the  wet  well.  The 
wet  well  has  a  capacity  of  about  15,000  gallons.  The  motors  are  installed  on  the  level  of 
the  Fifth  Street  platform,  with  shafts  about  15  feet  long  extending  down  to  the  pumps. 
Motors  and  sewage  ejectors  are  in  a  room  specially  built  for  their  accommodation  on  the 
east  end  of  the  Fifth  Street  platform. 

The  pumps  are  all  of  5  inch  vertical  shaft  type  with  open  bronze  propellers  and  glands. 
Each  pump  is  rated  at  600  gallons  per  minute.  They  are  direct  connected  to  12 \  horse- 
power Electro-Dynamic  motors,  of  vertical  shaft  550  volt  815  revolution  direct  current 
interpole  type.  They  are  operated  by  Cutler-Hammer  floats  and  tank  switches,  and 
Cutler-Hammer  Bulletin  70  automatic  starters. 

The  power  for  operating  the  pump  motors  is  taken  from  the  direct  current  Subway 
lighting  cable,  but  the  wiring  is  so  arranged  that  they  can  be  connected  to  the  third  rail 
in  case  of  trouble  on  the  lighting  cable. 


T.  B.  McAvov,  JOHN  C.  McAvov, 

President  Secretary  and  General  Manager 

The  McAvoy 
Vitrified  Brick  Co. 


Offices:    Rooms  2,  3  and  4 
German-American  Building 

Philadelphia 


Annual  Capacity,  15,OOO,OOO 


Vitrified  Bricks  and  Blocks 
for   Streets    and    Roadways 


Vitrified  Invert  Bricks  for 
Sewers  and  Tunnels 


We  furnished  all  Bricks  used  in  the  Subway 


MAIN  OFFICE  AND 
SHOP 

22d  St.  and 
Washington  Ave. 

Philadelphia,  Pa. 


BRIDGE  SHOP 

EDDYSTONE,  PA. 


BRANCH  OFFICES 

1622  Real  Estate  Bldg. 
Philadelphia,  Pa. 


BRIDGES 


No.  1  W.  34th  St. 
New  York 


BUILDINGS 


BELMONT  IRON  WORKS 

ENGINEERS  AND  CONTRACTORS 

Structural  Steel  and  Ornamental  Iron 


FOR 


Bridges  and  Buildings 


TANK  TOWERS 


CONTRACTORS 
FOR 

Elevated  Stations 

Philadelphia 
Rapid  Transit  Co. 


ORNAMENTAL    WORK 


Railroad  Bridges 

Highway       " 

Draw 

Locomotive    Turntables 

Office  and  Mill  Buildings 

Tank  Towers 

ORNAMENTAL  IRON 

Bridge  Railings 
Stairs  and  Grilles 

Beams,  Angles  and  Plates 

of  all  sizes 
carried  in  stock 


BOND,  $800,000 


THIS  Company,  with  its  associate  companies, 
executed  the  contractors'  bond  in  the  sum  of 
$800,000  for  the  Millard  Construction  Com- 
pany, guaranteeing  the  completion  of  this  magnificent 
piece  of  work,  which  is  a  monument  to  the  enter- 
prise of  those  connected  with  the  Philadelphia  Rapid 
Transit  Company  and  the  Millard  Construction 
Company. 

National  Surety  Co.  of  New  York 
Wm.  B.  Joyce,  President 


The  Thos.  B.  Smith  Company 

General  Agent 
BETZ    BUILDING 

PHILADELPHIA 


Smith  Mixer 

Equipped   with    Batch    Loading    Device 

Smith    Mixers    were    used    on     the 

Philadelphia   Subway,   giving   excellent  satisfaction 

to    both    engineer    and     contractor 


SEND     FOR    CATALOGUE 


Contractors'    Supply    and    Equipment    Co. 
Consolidated  with  The  T.  L.  Smith  Co. 


NEW  YORK  OFFICE: 
170  BROADWAY 


CHICAGO  OFFICE  : 
OLD  COLONY  BUILDING 


MILWAUKEE  OFFICE : 
MAJESTIC  BUILDING 


F.  F.  Vandevort 

66    BROADWAY,    NEW    YORK 


Manufacturers'  Agent  for  Iron  and 
Steel  Bars,  Plates,  Wrought  Iron 
and  Steel  Pipe,  Cast  Iron  Pipe,  etc. 


Large    Contractors 

furnished  with  entire 
requirements  of  Wrought 
Iron  and  Steel,  includ- 
ing Structural  Work 


IRON  AND   STEEL  CASTINGS 
OF    EVERY    DESCRIPTION 


CHARLES  I.  KENT    Pres. 
WM.  L.  GUENTHER.  Vice-Pres 
LEON  ROSENBAUM,  Treas.  and  Sec'y. 


J.  JACOB  SHANNON  &  CO. 

MILL,  MINE,  RAILWAY 
BUILDERS'  AND  CONTRACTORS' 

SUPPLIES,  HARDWARE 


AND 


EQUIPMENT 

1 744   Market   Street 
Philadelphia 


DEALERS    IN 

CENTRIFUGAL  PUMPS 
STEAM  SHOVELS 
DUMP  CARTS 
ROCK  DRILLS 
BOILERS,  ETC. 

MAKERS    OF 

DERRICKS  AND 

DERRICK  FITTINGS 


American 

Bridge  Company 

of  New  York 


Engineers  and  Contractors 
for  Structural  Steel  for 

*, 

Every  Purpose 


Annual  capacity 
75O,OOO  tons 

Contracting  Offices  in  Twenty-four 
American  Cities 


Philadelphia    Office  -    -  Pennsylvania    Building 

GENERAL  OFFICES 

Hudson   Terminal,   3O   Church   Street 

NEW    YORK 


CHAS.   F.  FELIN  WM.  L.  LUDASCHER  AMOS  Y.  LESHER 

Chas.  F.  Felin  &  Co. 

MANUFACTURERS,     WHOLESALERS    AND     RETAILERS     OF 

LUMBER 

Millwork  and  Stairwork 

MAIN  OFFICE: 

LAND  TITLE  BUILDING,  PHILADELPHIA 

MAIN  YARD  AND  CITY  MILL 

Old  York  Road  and  Butler  Street 

WHARVES 

Pier  42,  N.  Delaware  Ave.         Westmoreland  St.,  Delaware  River 

SOUTHERN  MILLS 
NEW  BERN,  N.  C.  WASHINGTON,  N.  C.  NORTH  HARLOWE,  N.  C. 


We  carry  the  largest  stock  of 

N.    C.    PINE    IN    PHILADELPHIA 

and  make  a  specialty  of  material  used  in 

Building  Operations,  Bridges,  Factories  and  Large 
Buildings,  Street  Railways,  Sewers,  Elevators, 
Reinforced  Concrete  Construction  Forms,  etc. 

MILLWORK  OF  EVERY  DESCRIPTION 
SASH          DOORS         BLINDS          INTERIOR  FINISH 

Will  be  pleased  to  quote  you  on  anything  required  in  our  line.    'Phone  us  and  our  representative  will  call 

We  furnished   most  of  the  lumber  used  in  the  construction  of 

the  Subway 


National 

Dredging  and 

Lighterage 

Co. 


Sand,  Gravel 
Pebbles  and 
Crushed  Stone 


614-615   FIDELITY  BUILDING 
PHILADELPHIA 


The  De  Prain  Sand 

Company 


Building  Materials 


Main   Office: 
Beach  and  Berks  Sts. 

Wharves    I   Pier    67    North»    Delaware    River 
1   Christian  Street,  Schuylkill  River 

PHILADELPHIA 


Deliveries  by  Boat,  Rail  or  Team 


NO  CONTRACT  TOO 
LARGE  TO  HANDLE 
AND  NONE  TOO 
SMALL  FOR  CARE- 
FUL ATTENTION 


Vulcanite 
Portland  Cement 


Trade-Mark  Roistered  U.  S.  Patent  Office 


25Q,QQQ  Barrels 

used  in  the  construction  of 
the  Market  Street  Elevated 
and  Subway  of  the  Philadel- 
phia Rapid  Transit  Company 


LAND  TITLE  BUILDING  FLAT  IRON  BUILDING 

PHILADELPHIA  NEW  YORK 


ilnsuranr? 


0f  ijarifttrft,  (Emtwrtintt 

SYLVESTER  C.  DUNHAM,  President 
PHILADELPHIA  BRANCH  OFFICE,  415-417  Walnut  Street 


Assets,    $56,000,000 
Surplus,     $5,000,000 


Life,  Accident,  Health  and  Liability  Insurance 

The  Largest  Liability  and  Accident  Insurance 
Company  in  the  World 


LIABILITY 
INSURANCE 


RETURNS  TO  POLICYHOLDERS,  $78,000,000 

For  Contractors,  Manufacturers,  Owners  of  Elevators,  Teams,  Auto- 
mobiles, Buildings  and  Residences,  covering  liability  to  employees  and 
to  the  public. 

Our  new  POLICY  FORMS  are  the  best,  and  furnish  the  complete 
protection  which  extended  experience  in  Liability  Insurance  teaches 
that  the  assured  requires. 

The  best-equipped  INSPECTION  organization  for  the  protection  of 
the  assured  and  for  the  determination  of  satisfactory  ratings,  particu- 
larly for  Contractors. 

ACCIDENT  Our  policies  cover  all  accidents  and  offer  large  benefits  at  a  small  cost. 

INSURANCE  These  policies  include  accumulations,  double  indemnity  for  certain 

accidents,   the  beneficiary  insurance  provision,   surgical  and   elective 

benefits. 


HEALTH 
INSURANCE 

LIFE 
INSURANCE 


The  most  liberal  contracts  covering  all  diseases. 


The  maximum  amount  of  insurance  at  the  lowest  cost  compatible 
with  absolute  security. 

Guarantees  in  place  of  indefinite  dividends. 

These  policies  contain  a  DISABILITY  CLAUSE  which  continues 
the  insurance  without  further  premium  payments  in  case  the  assured 
is  wholly,  continuously  and  permanently  disabled  by  accident  or  disease. 


BOILER  AND  FLY-WHEEL  INSURANCE 

Jttfomtuig  (Emttpattg,  uf 


,  (Ennnwtmtt 


STEAM  TURBINES 


A  25,000  H.  P.  Turbine 

Manufactured  by  the  Westinghouse   Machine  Co.,  the  pioneers  and  leaders  in  the  devel- 
opment of  this  modern  prime  mover. 

Over  a  million  horse-power  in  daily  operation 

Special  types  are  built  for   non-condensing   service ;    for  utilizing  exhaust   steam   and  for 
driving  centrifugal  pumps,  blowers,  etc. 

The  Company  also  builds   LEBLANC   CONDENSERS,  especially    designed   to   insure   the 
high  vacuum  desirable  in  steam  turbine  operation. 

The  Westinghouse  Machine  Co. 

Steam    Turbines,    Steam   Engines,    Gas    Engines,    Gas 
Producers,    Storage    Batteries    and    the  Roney   Stoker 


New  York  City.    1&5   Broadway 
Boston.   131   State  St 
Cleveland.  New  England  Building 
Chicago.   17  1    La  Salle  St. 


Cincinnati,  Traction   Buil  ling 
Allied.  CanJJer  Building 
St.   Lou  a.  Chemical  Building 
Pittsburg,  Westinghouse  Building 


Philadelphia.    North    American    Building 

Denver.  McPhec  Building 

San  Francisco.  Hunt.  Mirk  Cf  Co. 


Filbert 
Paving  and  Construction  Co. 

903-10  Pennsylvania  Building 
i5th  and   Chestnut  Streets 

PHILADELPHIA 

Asphalt  Paving 
Asphalt  Mastic 
General  Contractors 


* 

Richardson  &  Ross  Quarry  Co, 

907  Pennsylvania  Building 
1 5th  and  Chestnut  Streets 


PHILADELPHIA 


Crushed  Stone 


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